


Say something

by I_cant_live_without_my_coffee



Category: The 100 (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, F/F, Fluff
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-04-15
Updated: 2018-03-02
Packaged: 2018-06-02 08:22:43
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 11
Words: 124,701
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6559198
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/I_cant_live_without_my_coffee/pseuds/I_cant_live_without_my_coffee
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Lexa doesn't speak.<br/>She can, she just doesn't</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Memories

The past two years of Lexa's life could only be described as mundane. Get up, go to school, go home, do her homework, go back to bed, for a full year this is all she did.  
  
When she started studying Law at Polis University her family had hoped that it would change her routine or if they were really lucky she might even open up to someone and at least let herself have a friend. Unfortunately Lexa was determined not to trust anyone which led to another full year of the same routine.  
  
For two years she had managed to shut everyone out of her life. The only exceptions to this were her cousins Anya and Lincoln which only happened because they refused to let Lexa shut them out of her life.

Everything was going as Lexa had planned it, she focused exclusively on her studies only speaking in class when necessary or speaking to her cousin's when they called. Someday she would get a dull job that she would hate and live out her days alone so that she would never have anything important in her life to lose.  
  
Polis University was no Ivy League school. Most of its students were people that just barely graduated from high school or people that had feared leaving their hometown. Lexa chose to go there because of how ordinary it was.  
  
Two years ago her dream school was Arkadia University which wasn't all that far from Polis. When she had decided to live a dull life she refused to allow the college of her dreams to be a part of that life which is how she ended up there. She regrets this but she believed it was the right decision.  
  
She had done well in her first year in Polis University, better than well she was top of her class. She didn't consider this much of an achievement though considering she was Ivy League material in an average college. Still she wouldn't complain she chose to do it this way and now she has no other choice but to stick with it.  
  
A week after Lexa's received her results for her first year, she had an unexpected visit from one of her professors, who gave her some news that would change her life.

_~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~_

  
_Her roomates usually answer the door but since they've gone home for the summer it's up to her to answer it now. She figured it was probably Anya or Lincoln so she wasn't concerned about having to answer it. She pulls open the door._

 _To say that she was shocked to find Professor Jaha standing at her door would be an understatement._  
  
_"Hello Ms.Woods, may I come in?" He asks. She nods in response and gestures to the couch._  
  
_Luckily Jaha understands that Lexa doesn't speak outside of the classroom. Anya had been kind enough to explain everything to him before Lexa started the course. He sits on the couch, Lexa sits in the single chair beside him._  
  
_"I won't take up too much of your time Ms.Woods, I'm here to speak about your education, specifically your future at Polis University."_  
  
_Lexa nods for him to continue._  
  
_"I am here to inform you that you are no longer a student at Polis University."_  
  
_Lexa sits there stunned, she doesn't understand what it is that she could have done wrong. She's the top student in her class, possibly in the whole university, she's never broken any of their rules. 'how can this be happening?' She thinks to herself._  
  
_"Don't panic Ms.Woods that's not a bad thing, the opposite actually."_  
  
_Lexa tilts her head in confusion. Jaha gives her a warm smile._  
  
_"I have spoken with a friend of mine in Arkadia University and he agrees that someone with your level of intelligence should not be stuck in an average college so he has taken your case to the board of admissions and I am happy to tell you that you are now a student at Arkadia University."_  
  
_Lexa's mouth hangs open. Jaha chuckles._  
  
_"I take it this is good news then?"_  
  
_Lexa gives him a big smile and nods enthusiastically. He chuckles again._  
  
_"Good I have discussed it with your family and they were just as happy as you are. Oh if you're wondering how I contacted them your cousin Anya gave me her contact details at the beginning of the year so that I could get in touch with her if I ever thought you were struggling, luckily I never had to. Your cousin is quite feisty and threatened to hurt me if I ever told you about that but I think since this is good news she won't be angry about me telling you now." He gives her an amused look._  
  
_She gives him an apologetic expression._

 _"Don't worry Ms.Woods I find it quite endearing how much your cousin cares for you. Now back to the main topic. I'm sure you're worried about your college fees."_  
  
_She gives him a nod with a serious expression on her face again._  
  
_"Well I also spoke with your family about that and they insisted they would pay but I offered another way. It took them quite a while to accept it but once I told them it was a non-negotiable condition of you getting a place in this course they accepted."_  
  
_Lexa gives him a curious look._  
  
_"Lexa...can I call you Lexa?"_  
  
_She nods and he smiles._  
  
_"Lexa, when your cousin explained all the pain you had experienced in such a short amount of time I had thought that you would lack interest in your studies, I am glad to admit that I was wrong. I immediately noticed all the potential you have and how it was being wasted at our university. Most of my students don't have what it takes to become a great lawyer but you do Lexa."_

 _He takes a moment to breathe before continuing._  
  
_"I have been a professor at Polis University for a very long time now and at some point I lost my love for teaching but you have reminded me of why I love teaching. As a teacher I have the ability to shape the future, what I teach my students could change the world and by not being fully commited to teaching them the best that I could I have been sending people out into world who probably won't have any impact on how the world is in twenty years time but you will Lexa. You will change this world. I guess it took seeing a student with your determination to remind me of that and I have to thank you for that."_  
  
_He gives her a proud smile. Her eyes start to water after receiving such a compliment from someone she has great respect for._  
  
_"I can't explain what it means to me to have that passion for teaching back. It hasn't just changed my work, it's changed my life, I have never been happier than I am now, even my wife is thankful that you came into my life." His eyes begin tearing up. "It's an incredible gift you've given me Lexa and I would like to give you something in return."_  
  
_He takes a moment to compose himself before he continues._  
  
_"My wife and I have decided that in order to thank you we will be paying the fees for your education."_  
  
_Lexa can't hold back the tears at this point, she cries uncontrollably. She can't believe what she's just heard. She wonders if he knows just how much it means to her for someone to do something this monumental for her. She tries to think of a way she can thank him._  
  
_She finally decides that the best way to thank him is to trust him. "Thank you so much Professor Jaha. You have no idea what this means to me. I don't know how I will ever repay you."_  
  
_Jaha is the first person (apart from Lincoln and Anya) Lexa has trusted enough to speak to in two years._  
  
_"You are very welcome and I think you can call me Thelonious now that I'm no longer your teacher Lexa." He smiles. "You don't have to repay me. There is one think you must do for me though Lexa."_  
  
_"Anything" she replies._  
  
_"My wife and I would like you to send regular updates on how you are doing in Arkadia University. Sending us an e-mail once a month should suffice, if that's ok for you?" He asks hesitantly, he wonders if she would be comfortable with that._  
  
_"Of course, I'll send one everyday if you want?" They both chuckle at her response._  
  
_"I think you'll be too busy to send one everyday so let's say once a week but only if you can and once a month for sure, how does that sound?"_  
  
_"I can manage that." She says with a smile._  
  
_"Oh, I almost forgot there are two more things I have to tell you, the first is that your family wanted me to tell you that they will give you a weekly allowance for your rent, bills, food and anything else you need so that you can focus solely on your studies, they said to tell you that's also non-negotiable." He lets out a hearty laugh recalling the conversation._  
  
_"Of course they would say that." She laughs along with him._  
  
_"The second is that my wive would like to meet you before you leave for Arkadia, she wants you to come to dinner at our house but that is only if you're comfortable with it."_

 _"I would love to. I can't wait to meet her and thank her for all of this. I really can't believe this is real."_  
  
_"Well I can assure you it's very real Lexa. I really do believe in you and I know you'll be top of your class in Arkadia University."_  
  
_"Thank you Thelonious, I promise I will do the very best that I can, your money will not go to waste."_  
  
_"I know it won't and I will proudly watch when you receive your diploma and I'll be there in the courtroom for your first court case."_  
  
_"You will?" She asks slightly shocked._  
  
_"Oh I'm sorry, I didn't mean to assume that I would be invited I just-"_  
  
_"No, no, of course you're invited, I guess I just didn't think you would want to be a part of my life after I graduate."_  
  
_"Lexa we're not just paying for you to go to a better school, we're doing this to give you a better life. You gave purpose to my work again and that's made me a happier person which has given my wife and I a better life. We're not just going to forget you after you graduate, we want you to be a part of our lives for as long as you want to be and we hope that would be for a very long time."_  
  
_Tears start to build in Lexa's eyes._  
  
_"I...." She tries to calm herself. "I want you both to be in my life for as long as possible. You are the first person I've trusted enough to speak to in two years Thelonious, I can't explain the importance of that and you're also giving me something I could only dream of and now you want to be a part of my life, in two years no one has wanted that and I just....I'm so grateful Thelonious, I.....you really don't know how much this all means to me. Each of those things alone are incredible but altogether it's so much, it means so much." She stops trying to hold back the tears at this point._

 _She moves over to the couch next to Jaha and wraps her arms around him in a tight hug. She is just as shocked as he is by this gesture but he quickly wraps an arm around her and she dismisses the thoughts of how odd it was of her to initiate this hug._  
  
_"Well when you put it like that I guess it does make us sound kind of great." He lets out a soft laugh, still hugging her. "I am glad you trust me though Lexa. I understand how difficult it must be for you to trust people and I don't take that responsibility lightly, I will never betray your trust." He states it confidently so that she knows his words are true. "And now that you trust me enough to speak to me maybe you can call sometimes instead of sending e-mails. Spending less time staring at my computer screen would probably be good for my eyesight." He lets out a soft chuckle._  
  
_Lexa finally withdraws from the hug to smile at him. "I will definitely call. The same probably applies for me and I'd rather not be blind by the time I hit thirty." They both chuckle._  
  
_Jaha's phone beeps signalling a new message, he reaches into his pocket and pulls it out. Lexa watches as he reads it, he immediately erupts in loud laughter. Lexa looks at him with a confused expression. "It seems someone couldn't wait to hear what you thought of about this." He hands her his phone._  
  
_On the screen she sees two messages, she didn't hear the notification of the second one. She scrolls up on the screen to the first one._  
  
_**Alie (14:46)**_  
_**Did you tell her? What did she think? Is she happy? I hope she's happy. Did you tell her the part about her family? Don't forget to tell her, they're funny I like them already. Is she going to come to dinner so I can meet her?**_  
  
_**Alie (14:47)**_  
_**I'm so glad we're doing this for her. Don't forget to tell her about the regular updates part, she's going to make us so proud, I know she will :)  Answer me as soon as you get this, it's killing me not knowing.**_  
  
_Just then a third message appears on the screen and now Lexa is the one errupting into a fit of laughter. She hands the phone to Jaha._  
  
_**Alie (14:50)**_  
_**Thelonious Jaha, I know you read my messages, you will answer me RIGHT NOW. If not you'll be coming home to a VERY angry wife.**_  
  
_Jaha chuckles at his wife's messages before sending a quick reply. "As you can see she's very enthusiastic about this."_

 _"Yeah, I like her already and I will do my best to make you two proud, I promise."_  
  
_"I know you will Lexa, you're an incredibly intelligent girl but don't stress yourself out trying to make us proud, we'll be proud of you even if you decide to drop out after a year to become a circus clown." They both chuckle at the idea of Lexa as a clown. "I'm already proud of you now for trusting me enough to let me into your life."_  
  
_"Thanks Thelonious, I don't know what I did to deserve having you and your wife in my life but I really am happy to have you both in it."_  
  
_"Alie's going to love you, she already does." He chuckles softly._  
  
_"Alie's a lovely name, I don't think I've ever heard that name before."_  
  
_"Would you like to know what it means?"_  
  
_Lexa nods in response._  
  
_"It has quite a few meanings, precious, awakening, noble, bright and man's defender. I find all of them are accurate for Alie so I've never settled on a particular one that defines her."_  
  
_"What does Thelonious mean?"_  
  
_He thinks for a moment. "I actually don't know." He laughs. "I've known Alie's since our first date so many years ago and I've never learned my own." They both laugh hysterically at this._

_  
Their conversation continues for so long and so easily after this that Jaha asks Lexa to join them for dinner that evening and she happily accepts the offer. She had worried that she wouldn't be able to open up to Alie for a while and that the woman wouldn't like her as a result of that but to her surprise she has no problem talking to Alie. She enjoys their company and finds herself smiling more often in one night than she has in the past two years._

_~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~_  
  
_She later talks to Anya and Lincoln on Skype, she needs to hear them say it so that she knows this isn't all just a dream._  
  
_"Anya, Linc I can't believe it...."_  
  
_"We couldn't either but believe it little Lexi you're an Ivy League student now." Anya replies._  
  
_"We're so proud of you Lexa." Lincoln adds._  
  
_They talk for hours, well into the early hours of the next day before they say their goodbyes. Lexa, Anya and Lincoln were completely unaware that their parents, Lexa's aunt and uncle, Indra and Gustus sat on the other side of the door the whole time listening to their favourite niece speak passionately about her future. All the Woods family were exhausted the next day but the pride they felt listening to Lexa was well worth being a little sleep deprived._

_~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~_

  
_The next day the Woods family had a celebration dinner for Lexa and for the first time in two years she spoke to Indra and Gustus, usually she just answered their questions when they asked._  
  
_This time she decided to let them in and told them all of her thoughts and feelings. It was such a shock to them that Gustus, a man who never struggled to find something to say, stood speechless and Indra, who rarely showed her emotions, broke down in tears. Lexa began to think that their reactions meant she had made a bad decision but before she could close herself off again she was engulfed in a hug by the four members of the Woods clan._  
  
_Two days ago Lexa could count the number of people she could trust on one hand and now she needs two. She can't help feeling overwhelmed after everything that's happened in such a short amount of time._  
  
_She knows things are going to get tough soon. She will have to find an apartment and a roommate since she doesn't want her family to have to pay too much for her rent and bills she thinks this is the best solution. Despite how horrible her last roommates were she figures she can deal with a difficult living situation to save her family some money after everything they have done for her. That is what makes this moment even more special to Lexa, now she has six people in her life she cares deeply for, who she can talk to if life gets hard._  
  
_She knows that this hasn't fixed her trust issues and that it's unlikely she will be willing to open up to anyone else for a very long time but for now she has more people she knows will be by her side whenever she needs them._

_~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~_

_A short time later they stand outside their family home to say their goodbyes. Lexa still has some time before she has to move to Arkadia so she plans to spend as much time as possible with her family before she leaves. After the events of the day though this goodbye is very emotional. Gustus and Indra are reluctant to let Lexa leave now that she trusts them again, they finally feel like they have their Lexa back and they would love to spend hours getting to know her again if they could but they know they shouldn't push her too much._  
  
_They've all experienced a wide range of emotions today and they feel exhausted after it but in a good way._  
  
_"So you're going to call us once a week, right?" Indra asks._  
  
_"Yes, on Saturdays I will call you and the Jaha's and tell you all about my week." She responds, rolling her eyes when she thinks of how little faith they have in her. She realizes then that she can't blame them for this._

 _"Umm..." She starts fidgeting nervously. "I just want you to know that I'm sorry I shut you out for so long when all you did was try to take care of me."_  
  
_"There is no need for apologies Lexa, you have been through a lot. It was difficult to watch you shutting us out but we understand your reasons for doing that and we don't blame you for doing so. We always knew someday you would let us back in and we are so happy that you did but I want you to do one thing for us if that's ok?" Gustus waits for her to confirm before continuing, she nods her head and gives him a smile._  
  
_"I want you to always remember that we are your family Lexa, we will always be by your side when you need us, all you have to do is call us and we'll be there so I want you to promise that if you do need us you will call." Gustus looks into her eyes so she knows he is serious about this._

 _"I promise Uncle Gus." She replies confidently._  
  
_It's been far too long since he last heard Lexa call him that._  
  
_"That's my girl." He says proudly, pulling her into a tight hug._  
  
_"Uncle Gus as much as I love your hugs, I kind of can't breathe right now so you're going to have to loosen up a little." The three other Woods laugh beside them seeing Lexa struggling to free herself._  
  
_"Linc, I thought you were helping this girl get stronger? you must be taking it too easy on her, she can't even break free from a hug." Gustus has a hard time keeping her from slipping away, he really is impressed by how strong she is but he won't tell her, it's much more fun teasing her._  
  
_"Not fair Uncle Gus, you're like a bear, how am I supposed to escape from a bear?"_  
  
_"I'm not like a bear Lexa, I am a bear, can't you feel my fur?" He tilts his head to the side to tickle Lexa's neck with his beard, which at one time had been so long it reached his chest but recently had been cut up to reach just below his chin._  
  
_"Ugh Uncle Gus stop it!!" She shouts._  
  
_The three other Woods can't help but smile at the scene in front of them. This had always been a game Gustus would play with the family whenever he hugged one of them but it had been a long time since they had last seen Lexa and him interact like this. It warmed their hearts to see the real Lexa again._  
  
_A cunning plan formed in Lexa's mind. Gustus had been holding on tightly to prevent her from escaping, she was trying so hard to escape that she knew if she stopped and stood still for a brief moment he would instinctively relax thinking she was giving up and that she'd let him hug her, once he did this Lexa quickly slipped from his arms and ran behind the other three Woods._  
  
_Once safely behind her cousins and aunt she smirked in triumph. "Do you know what I did to escape from you Uncle Gus?"_  
  
_He shakes his head._  
  
_"I just used my brilliant, soon-to-be-Ivy-League-educated mind to outsmart you. My brain will always beat your brawn."_  
  
_"That's my girl" Indra states proudly as she gives Lexa a high five. All five members of the Woods clan laughed uncontrollably together._

_Once their laughter comes to an end they say their goodbyes. They have another group hug, Gustus asks for a hug and Lexa spots the mischievous gleam in his eyes, she's too smart for his tricks so she suggests a group hug knowing he can't get her when she's surrounded by the others._

_~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~_  
  
It's been a little over a month since those two memorable days. There have been many more since then, some with her family, some with the Jaha's. She hopes there will be many more days like them.  
  
Now Lexa stands in her (soon to be old) room packing up the last of her belongings to start her new life in Arkadia. She feels her phone vibrate in her pocket. She checks it just in case it's from the owner of the building.  
  
**Anya (12:43)**  
**I really hope you get along better with this roommate.**  
  
**Lexa (12:44)**  
**I will don't worry, judging from her e-mails she seems nice.**  
  
**Anya (12:45)  
Does that mean you'll speak to her when she tries speaking to you? It's great that you let the Jaha's and mom and dad in. Letting a stranger in would be a big step but I think you should at least try, there's no harm in trying.**

 **  
Lexa  (12:46)  
Don't push it Anya, I told her in my last e-mail that I don't speak, I didn't expand on why I don't but she didn't push it either so it's fine.**  
  
**Anya (12:46)**  
**LEXA WHAT THE HELL?! she probably thinks you're mute, how do you think she'll react when she hears you on the phone to one of us?**  
  
**Lexa (12:47)**  
**It's fine, I'm sure she has friends, she doesn't need me to talk to her.**  
  
**Anya (12:48)**  
**Oh Lex, I wish you'd just let someone into your life, I know you'll say you have us but it's not the same, I wish you'd at least try to make a friend.**  
  
**Lexa (12:49)**  
**I won't make any promises but i'll think about it Anya.**  
  
**Anya (12:50)**  
**That's all I ask for Lex. When are you officially moving in?**  
  
**Lexa (12:50)**  
**Tomorrow just finishing up all my packing now. I'm staying with the Jaha's tonight so the drive won't take as long tomorrow.**  
  
Only two boxes remain in the room, the rest of them are already in her car. She looks around the empty room. ' _There are no memories here_ ' she thinks to herself. It saddens her to think that but it's also a relief, she wouldn't want there to be memories in a place she never cared for. She leaves her room for the last time, she places her keys on the kitchen counter as requested by the owner of the building, she walks out the front door. She doesn't look back at the place that had been her home for a year simply because she never saw it as her home. _  
_


	2. Moving day

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lexa moves into her new apartment.

"Earth to Clarke!" Octavia says, shaking Clarke's shoulder slightly.  
  
"Whats going on in your head Griff?" Raven asks.  
  
"Sorry guys I'm just a bit nervous, I've never lived with a stranger before."  
  
"It will be fine, Clarke."  
  
"What if she hates me?"  
  
"Doesn't matter, you'll be busy with classes and you're going to be hanging out at our place most of the time so even if you don't get along with this Lexa you'll hardly ever be here." Octavia says squeezing Clarke's shoulder to reassure her.  
  
"And you know we've got your back if the shit hits the fan Griff but there really is nothing to worry about."  
  
"Yeah, you guys are right, besides she told me in her emails she doesn't talk so it's not like we'll get in a lot of arguments."  
  
"Wait, what?! Like she can't speak or she just doesn't?" Raven asks.  
  
"I don't know, she didn't explain and I didn't want to ask."  
  
"Well that doesn't matter, she still won't hate you, there's no one that could and I'm sure you two will be good friends." Octavia says, determined to make Clarke believe it.  
  
"Thanks guys, I feel a lot better now."  
  
"We're like your personal cheerleaders Griff, whenever you need a reminder of how awesome you are we'll be there for you but I am not wearing one of those tacky uniforms so get that idea out of your head."  
  
"Aww but Raven you'd look so cute in a cheerleader uniform."  
  
"I know you just want to check out my fabulous legs in a short skirt Clarke but it's still not happening, end of discussion."  
  
"I will get you to wear the uniform someday Raven, that's a promise."  
  
"Ok guys, time to get back to work we still got a lot of cleaning to do before this new roommate arrives." Octavia announces, trying to send them back to their separate jobs before things escalate and regrettable bets are made. "And you need to shower before she gets here Clarke."  
  
"What? Why? I had a shower last night."  
  
"Yeah but that was before our movie marathon, have you seen yourself today?"  
  
"No but I can't look too bad we just sat on a couch watching movies, how can I look bad after that?"  
  
Raven walks over to Clarke and pulls something out of her hair. "You've got a whole lot of popcorn in your hair Griff and your necks all sticky from when O spilled her drink on you." She eats the piece of popcorn she pulled from Clarke's hair.  
  
"Gross Raven, did you seriously just eat that?" Octavia gives her a disgusted look.  
  
"What? It's fine, she washed her hair yesterday."  
  
"That's just weird Raven."  
  
"Yeah Raven, even I think that's gross and it was in my hair it came out of." Clarke adds.  
  
"Whatever, maybe you two should focus on cleaning this place up instead of judging me."  
  
"I know you're just trying to distract us from what you just did but I agree, she said she would be here sometime in the afternoon so we've only really got an hour left to clean this place so let's get to work ladies."

* * *

  
_Later that day._  
  
Lexa stands frozen in place outside her new apartment. She's running through all the various scenarios that could take place when she knocks on this door.

She tells herself everything will be ok, that she'll just move all her stuff in and then hide in her room for the year, thinking this way takes away all her worries. She raises her hand to knock but before she can a door opens behind her, she turns to find two brunettes standing behind her.  
  
"Hi, you must be Lexa Woods, I'm Octavia Blake and this is Raven Reyes, we're Clarke's best friends. It's nice to meet you."  
  
Octavia extends her hand for Lexa to shake, Lexa obliges hoping that this will bring an end to this interaction.

A long silence drags on, Lexa opens her mouth not exactly sure of what she's going to do but before she can even try to do anything Octavia speaks again.  
  
"It's ok Lexa, Clarke told us you're not a talker, we were just wondering, do you want us to help you bring your stuff up?"  
  
Lexa is shocked by these two strangers offering to help her. She wants to decline their offer but she finds herself nodding her head.  
  
"Ok then, me and Lexa will carry the boxes up, Reyes you get the door and start taking the boxes into her room."

Raven stands up straight and salutes Octavia. "Yes ma'am" she says seriously. She looks at Lexa then and notices a smile tugging at her lips. "Was that a smile Woods?" She asked playfully. "I think me and Lexa are gonna be good friends, O." This time Lexa lets a small smile show.  
  
"Don't encourage her Lexa, her ego is already out of control, we don't need it getting any bigger." Octavia says.  
  
"I'm trying to make a new friend, O. Stop trying to scare her off just because your jealous that Lexa thinks I'm funnier than you." She teases.  
  
"Oh please, you're only funnier than me in your dreams, Reyes." Octavia sticks her tongue out at her friend.  
  
Lexa smiles while she watches the two best friends tease each other.  
  
"I-" Raven begins but is immediately cut off by Octavia.  
  
"Wait, let's not get sucked into another one of our debates until we've got all Lexa's stuff moved in, then we can argue for hours about it, ok?"  
  
Raven agrees.  
  
"Ok, Lexa lead the way."  
  
With that Lexa and Octavia head down the stairs, leaving Raven to deal with the boxes in the hallway. She bangs on the door. "Griff, get your ass out here these boxes are heavy."  
  
The door swings open to reveal a very confused blonde. "You're not carrying any boxes, Raven."  
  
"No but I will be and I already know they're gonna be heavy. Your roommate thinks I'm hilarious by the way."  
  
"Wait, how do you know that?"  
  
"I met her a minute ago, she's just gone to get the rest of her stuff, O's helping her carry them up, we have to bring them to her room." She gestures towards the boxes beside the door.  
  
"You met her? What's she like? I hope you two were nice to her."  
  
"Jeez Clarke have a little faith in us. Of course we were nice we're helping her move in. How much nicer can we be?!"  
  
"Ok, ok, I'm sorry and thank you for being nice to her, now answer my question, what's she like?"  
  
"Ridiculously hot" Raven gets a slap on the arm from Clarke. "Ouch!!! What the hell Griffin?!"  
  
"I'm serious Raven."  
  
"Ok, she's seriously hot." She says, earning herself a slap on the back of her head this time. "Damn it Clarke!! I don't know what else to say she didn't say anything, I don't know anything else about her."  
  
"Alright fine, I'm sorry."  
  
"Good, now unless you want your roommate to know we've been standing here talking about her I suggest you grab as many boxes as possible and start getting them into her room."  
  
"Oh shit you're right, let's move our asses."

* * *

  
_Meanwhile outside_  
  
Lexa and Octavia arrive at the car. "Holy shit Lexa, your car is beautiful. Raven's gonna lose it when she sees this." Octavia walks around the car inspecting every inch of the blue 1969 Chevrolet Camaro. She's so distracted that it takes a moment for her to notice the questioning look on Lexa's face.  
  
"Surprised that I'm interested in cars?" She already knows the answer from the curious expression on her face but she waits for Lexa to nod before continuing. "Well me, Clarke and Raven have been best friends since we were kids and Raven's a total car nerd and an engineering genius, so we spent years listening to Raven gush over cars and we ended up sharing her interest in them, we're all car nerds really but Raven is the queen of all car nerds. This is one of Ravens favourite cars. She's never seen one up close though so prepare yourself for a lot of excited squealing when she spots this." Octavia chuckles.  
  
Lexa smiles again which is both confusing and surprising to her. She had been so adamant that she would not make friends and spend all her time alone yet here she is enjoying the company of her roommates friend before she's even met her. Of course she still won't speak to them but she can't help but feel happy to spend time with someone that doesn't know her, doesn't know what happened to her and someone that's not judging her for not speaking.  
  
"Uh Lex, you alright?" Lexa nods slowly. "Ok so this should be quick with all four of us working together, you'll be settled in before you know it." Octavia gives her a warm smile.

* * *

 

Lexa can't believe how easy this has been and how considerate her roommate's friends have been. Not once did they push her to talk. Her previous roommates had called her a 'bitch' the day they first met her and continued to do so almost every time they saw her, despite Anya taking the time to explain to them that she had been through a lot and just couldn't speak to anyone until she's sure she can trust them.  
  
These people though are the complete opposite to them. They're patient and kind. They've only asked her things that she could respond to with a simple shake of her head. She's beginning to realize that these people are the right kind of people to have in her life. She feels oddly excited to meet Clarke, after meeting Octavia and Raven she had no doubt that Clarke would be just as great as they are. 

* * *

   
_30 minutes later._  
  
Octavia and Lexa had been carrying the boxes up to the hallway outside of the apartment for Clarke and Raven to carry into Lexa's new room. She knew that Octavia had been the one helping her carry the boxes because of the brace she noticed on Raven's leg, she figured it would be too much for Raven to have to make the three trips up and down the stairs. She guessed that Clarke was helping Raven just in case carrying all the boxes got to be too much for her. She felt relieved that someone was looking out for Raven despite only knowing her for no more than 5 minutes, Lexa really cared for Raven.  
  
Strangely both groups hadn't run into each other on any of the three trips up to the apartment.  
  
"Reyes, Griffin, we're finished." Octavia shouted into the apartment.  
  
Raven was the first one to appear in the room dropping herself down onto the couch. "Thank god." She let out a sigh of relief. "Hope you're hungry Woods we just ordered some pizza it'll be here soon, we didn't know what you liked so we got one loaded with cheese and one pepperoni, that alright?" She looked to Lexa who nodded enthusiastically, Raven laughed at the excitement she showed at the mention of food. "I like you already Woods." she happily stated. "Griffin hurry your ass up and get in here."  
  
"Raven, has anyone ever told you you're very impatient?" Clarke called from somewhere in the apartment, Lexa notices she has a raspy tone to her voice which she hadn't been expecting but she likes it.  
  
"Just about everyone I've ever met."  
  
Clarke chuckles as she approaches the room the three girls are gathered in and Lexa thinks it's the most beautiful sound she's ever heard.  
  
Then she's there standing only a few feet away from her. Lexa's breath hitches in her throat when she sees her. The blonde is wearing light grey sweatpants and a white v-neck t-shirt with a pair of worn black converse, Lexa thought she had never seen someone look so beautiful in casual clothing. 

Clarke has the very same reaction seeing Lexa for the first time. Lexa is wearing a pair of tight black jeans, a loose grey tank top with a leather jacket over it and leather boots. Clarke now sees that Raven wasn't exaggerating when she said that her new roommate was ridiculously hot.

They both stand staring at each other, they make eye contact. Raven and Octavia glance between them and then at each other, neither of them have ever seen their friend react like this when meeting someone for the first time, usually she would have introduced herself by now.  
  
"Oh right you two haven't officially met yet." Octavia breaks the silence. "Lexa Woods meet Clarke Griffin, our best friend." Octavia says before Raven appears next to the blonde. "Clarke Griffin meet Lexa Woods, our new friend." Raven finishes the introduction.  
  
It takes Clarke a few seconds to pull herself out of the staring contest they seemed to be having, she extends her hand to Lexa who shakes it and holds on for just a moment longer than necessary, they both drop their hands to their sides immediately after. "Um, Hi Lexa it's so great to meet you." Lexa gave her a blinding smile in response. "I'm sorry these two ambushed you before we got to meet."  
  
"Hey!! We did not ambush her we didn't plan on walking out of the apartment at the exact moment she arrived but when we did we welcomed her and offered our assistance, any decent neighbour would do the same." Octavia tried to defend their actions.

"I'm sure that's what happened O, tell me, why was it that you both left the apartment together at that exact moment?" Clarke asks in an accusing manner.

She knew they hadn't planned on her asking that when she saw Octavia give Raven a look pleading for her help.  
  
"Milk!!!" Raven blurts out. "We needed milk, we were going to have cereal but we were out of milk so we were coming over here to get some from you when we happened to find Lexa in the hallway."  
  
"It's the middle of the afternoon Raven, why would you be having cereal now?" Clarke gives her a smug look that says she has her trapped and she should just confess their true intentions.  
  
"Breakfast is the most important meal of the day Clarke, regardless of what time it is, you should never skip breakfast." Raven has a proud expression on her face after coming up with an answer.  
  
"Ok then, lets pretend I believe that and move on to another question, why would it take the two of you to get some milk?" Clarke raises an eyebrow challenging Raven to come up with an excuse.  
  
Ravens proud expression falters for a moment before a wide grin appears on her face. "The world is a dangerous place Clarke what if I had been attacked in the hallway? No one would know and poor O would wither away from starvation because she never got the milk for her cereal, I asked her to come with me for her safety and mine."  
  
"There's something else that's very strange about that excuse, I seem to remember you buying enough milk to last the rest of the week when we went grocery shopping yesterday." Clarke knows all the tricks to catch Raven in a lie.  
  
"That is strange...." Raven trails off trying to think of a response, luckily there was a loud knock at the door providing her with the perfect way out of this interrogation. "Well i guess that sound means the Q&A session of storytime has ended, thanks for coming along, you've been a great audience." Raven waves at Clarke and Lexa as she races off to the door with Octavia sniggering alongside her.  
  
Clarke turns her attention back to Lexa "Sorry about them, I would say they're not usually like this but they always are." Lexa waves her hand as if to say 'don't worry about it' and then gives Clarke a warm smile.  
  
The two become locked in another staring contest. Clarke wonders how it could feel so good to stare into someones eyes, especially those of someone she has only just met. It didn't make her uncomfortable to do this, she likes this girl's eyes, she's actually quite fascinated by them, she has never seen green eyes that were this interesting, the shade of green reminded her of a forrest.  
  
"If you two want pizza I suggest ye get over here quickly, Raven didn't get to eat her cereal and there's a good chance she'll devour both these pizzas in seconds." Octavia says with a curious look having just witnessed the intense staring match the two were having.

"Well roomie, you hungry?" Clarke asks.

Lexa nods enthusiastically again. They join the other two on the couch. They spend some time talking, making sure that Lexa feels included in the conversation. At one point they discuss watching a movie together and they look to Lexa to see if she's ok with that, ordinarily Lexa would have retreated to her room by now, she's never been this comfortable with strangers before but she knows she likes these people so she agrees.

* * *

 

They watched three movies before Octavia and Raven went back to their own apartment, leaving the two roommates alone together for the first time. Their eyes locked for the third time that day. Neither of them made an effort to look away.

Lexa was accustomed to silence but not like this. Silence had never felt as comfortable to her as it did with Clarke. Just sitting there looking deep into Clarke's sky blue eyes she felt safe like Clarke would protect her from everything that could hurt her. She scolded herself for thinking this way about someone who was still a stranger to her.

The moment only ends when Clarke yawns, she hadn't been able to get much sleep the night before because of how worried she was about meeting Lexa. "I think it's time for bed." She looks to Lexa who nods in agreement. "If you need anything come get me, ok?" Lexa nods again, a soft smile on her face. "Ok, goodnight Lexa."

Lexa waves slightly, the only way she can think of saying goodnight without actually saying it. Clarke smiles again before walking away to her bedroom. Lexa goes to her own room and unpacks only what she needs at that time before falling into her bed, she hadn't realized how tired she was. She fell asleep as soon as she lay down.


	3. Best friends

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Octavia knows something, Raven wants to know what that is. Raven sees Lexa's car for the first time.

 Lexa woke up just a little after 3am in a panicked state. Every single night for the last two years she had the exact same nightmare which always led to her waking up to find tears rolling down her cheeks. She had foolishly hoped moving away from Polis might bring an end to her nightmares. 

The nightmares started three years ago, for the first year they had been solely about her father but in the last two years it had changed, it was not only about her father but also about her mother and Costia too so it was more like three separate nightmares in a row. She wondered if there would ever come a time when her past would stop haunting her.   
  
She didn't worry too much about going back to sleep, she usually only had the one nightmare at night and once it was over she would fall into a dreamless sleep.

 

* * *

  
The second time she woke up she looked at the clock to see that it was already 11am, she was surprised to discover she had overslept. Even without an alarm clock Lexa would always wake up at 7am, she wouldn't complain about it though she had never felt this well-rested before.  
  
After she climbed out of bed she pulled some clean clothes out of one of the many boxes scattered around the room and headed straight for the shower. She was sure that she looked awful since she had been too tired to bother removing her makeup before going to bed last night and then woke up with tears streaming down her face, if nothing else her mascara had surely been smeared all over her cheeks.   
  
She looked up and down the corridor before she crossed the hallway to the bathroom, she didn't want Clarke to see her looking like this. Her suspicions about her appearance were proven to be correct when she saw her reflection in the bathroom mirror. She wasted no time, practically leaping into the shower.

 

* * *

  
Clarke heard the noise of the shower as she walked down the corridor towards the kitchen. She had spent extra time picking out her outfit today. She felt slightly embarrassed that when she first met Lexa she had been wearing sweatpants and an old t-shirt, she picked out a low cut red t-shirt with her favourite pair of blue jeans, choosing to dress casual but still look nice.  
  
She decided she would make breakfast while Lexa was showering, that way it would be ready for her by the time she comes out of the bathroom. She stood in front of the open refrigerator trying to figure out what she could make. She eventually chose to make omelettes loaded with cheese since Lexa had favoured the cheese pizza rather than the pepperoni one.  
  
She had poured the mixture into the frying pan only a minute before the front door flung open with a loud bang and two excited brunettes ran into the kitchen.  
  
"What's for breakfast Clarkey?" Octavia asks with a cheeky grin.  
  
Clarke rolls her eyes. "Of all the superpowers you two could have had you somehow ended up with a super sense of smell. That's probably the lamest superpower to have."  
  
"We get free food because of our superpowers. I wouldn't call that lame, I'd call that brilliant, we get delicious food without having to do any of the work." Raven and Octavia high five.  
  
"Not anymore." Clarke states with a smug grin. "Now that you've pointed out to me that I kindly make delicious meals for you two and you do nothing to help, you and O are going to wash the dishes every time I cook something for you."  
  
"Damn it Reyes, what have you done?!" Octavia scolds her friend.  
  
"It's ok O, don't worry about it. You know Clarke never follows through when it comes to things like this. I bet by the time we finish our breakfast she will already have forgotten about it."  
  
Clarke moves to take a notepad and pen that had been on the countertop, she carefully rips out a page. Octavia and Raven watch her curiously, she manages to successfully block their view while she writes, keeping a close eye on food in the frying pan as she does.

After a few minutes she walks over to the refrigerator, pulls off one of the magnets and uses it to pin the note onto it. She walks back across the kitchen to finish cooking their breakfasts. The two brunettes approach the piece of paper now hanging on the refrigerator door.

The piece of paper is a note for their friends new roommate. It says:

_'Lexa,  
Our kind neighbours, Raven and O, have generously agreed to wash our dishes whenever they're over here pestering us as thanks for feeding them. If they try to get out of doing it please show them this note to remind them of that.'_

Below the writing Clarke had drawn a small sketch of Raven and Octavia crying while they're cleaning the dishes.

"Bet you twenty bucks Lexa won't use this note against us." Raven says to Octavia.  
  
"What makes you so sure she won't?"   
  
"Out of the three of us I'm definitely Lexa's favourite, there's no way she would use this note against me."  
  
"Alright, you've got a bet." They shake on it. "You should know though you're not her favourite, Clarke is." Octavia whispers the last part to Raven.   
  
Raven is confused by both what Octavia said and how she said it. "What would make you think that? She thinks I'm hilarious and why are we whispering?"  
  
"I'll explain it after breakfast, I don't want Clarke to hear this. Just make sure you watch Lexa and Clarke while we're eating, ok?"  
  
Raven nods, a confused expression on her face.  
  
Lexa walks in to find Raven and Octavia huddled together whispering about something and Clarke placing the contents of the frying pan onto plates. Clarke turns and spots Lexa. "Hey Lexa, I made omelettes, you want some?"  
  
Lexa walks over to Clarke, the wonderful scent of the omelettes hits her nose as she nods at Clarke.  
  
"Great." She smiles at Lexa. "Oh before I forget there's a note on the fridge for you."  
  
Lexa looks at her curiously before she walks to the refrigerator to examine the note. She smiles as she reads it. She notices the sketch of the two brunettes at the bottom of the page, without thinking she runs her index finger over the drawing feeling the indents the pen had made in the page. She removes her finger from the page but continues examining the drawing.   
  
Lexa doesn't see the stunned look on Octavia's face, the confused look on Raven's face and the fond smile Clarke has on hers while she watches Lexa. Clarke knows that it was only a quick sketch but the way Lexa looks at it like it's the Mona Lisa warms her heart, no one has ever looked at her art the way Lexa is looking at the sketch, no one has ever been so interested that they had to reach out and touch it the way Lexa just did. She makes a mental note to show Lexa her more impressive work.

The two brunettes quickly avert their gaze from Lexa before she turns around, Raven pulls out her phone and pretends that she is showing Octavia something on it. Lexa turns her attention to Clarke.  
  
"Can I trust you to use the note when necessary?"  
  
Lexa stands up straight, nods and then salutes Clarke causing the other three girls to laugh. Their laughter was warm and hearty, Lexa felt proud for making them laugh like this.  
  
Once the laughter ends Raven is the first to speak. "I've taught you well, Woods." She offers her hand for a high five and Lexa was happy to oblige.  
  
"Oh god, please don't teach her to be like you Raven, one of you is enough and I like Lexa just the way she is." Clarke hadn't thought about what she was saying until she said it. She could feel a light blush creeping up on her cheeks, she quickly turned around and continued placing their breakfast onto the plates.  
  
Hearing Clarke say that made Lexa's heart flutter, she wasn't sure if it was because a person outside of her family and the Jaha's liked her or if it was because Clarke liked her.  
  
"Breakfast's ready." Clarke proclaimed.  
  
Octavia and Raven almost tackled Clarke trying to get to the food, they grabbed their plates and headed off towards the couch leaving Lexa and Clarke alone together. The two fell into a comfortable silence as their eyes locked. It ended only a few seconds later when Lexa's stomach decided to voice it's anger at the lack of food in it.  _'Great.'_  Lexa thought as she looked down at her stomach and furrowed her brow.  _"The first sound Clarke hears from me is the sound of my stomach.'_  
  
Clarke giggled. She walked over to Lexa and handed her a plate. "Let's get some food in our bellies, shall we?" Lexa looked up to see Clarke's soft smile and instantly felt less embarrassed.

Clarke lead the way to the couch, Raven was sitting in the armchair and Octavia was sitting at the end of the couch close to Raven, allowing the two roommates to sit together. What they didn't know was that they had planned this seating arrangement so that Raven would have a perfect view of Clarke and Lexa.  
  
They were mostly silent as they ate their meals, an episode of friends was playing on the TV but no one was paying much attention to it.   
  
Raven had her eyes glued to the pair the entire time, not even looking down to see if she was picking anything up with her fork which resulted in her biting the empty metal fork quite a few times. Octavia knew something that she didn't and she was determined to find out what that was.   
  
Octavia kept her eyes on Raven waiting to see when she would realize what was going on.   
  
Clarke and Lexa both stared straight ahead at the TV but neither of them were actually watching it, occasionally they would steal glances at each other.

* * *

  
Breakfast ended without Raven figuring out what it was that Octavia knew.  
  
"Thanks for breakfast Clarkey you're the best cook in the whole building." Octavia gets up from her chair and walks over to place a kiss on Clarke's cheek.  
  
"Not the whole world?" Clarke asked her, feigning hurt.  
  
"Well I can't know whether you are or not without eating a meal made by every person in the world and that's just too much food, even for me, so you'll just have to settle for being the best in the building."  
  
"Does that mean you've eaten a meal from every single person that lives in this building?"  
  
"No but the smell from your apartment when you're cooking something is the best smell in the building so that must be proof that you are the best cook in the building."  
  
"Ok, I accept your compliment and I thank you for it." She says with a smile.  
  
"Thanks Griff." Raven places a kiss on Clarke's other cheek. "Lexa, come over with Clarke later, we're having another movie night."  
  
Lexa nods her head without thinking about it, she's surprised how easily she agreed but she doesn't regret it. She noticed how Raven used both her and Clarke's first names and she thinks that it is Raven's way of showing it's a genuine offer.  
  
Raven and Octavia make their way towards the door but just as they reach it Lexa jumps in front of it. They look at her, confused and curious about what's she's doing. Lexa reaches into her pocket and pulls out a sheet of paper. She holds it up for them to see and they realize it's Clarke's note. Lexa had taken it and put it in her pocket before she followed Clarke to the couch.  
  
They both make a displeased noise. They lower their heads and walk over to take the plates into the kitchen. Lexa hears Octavia say something to Raven about owing her twenty dollars. Clarke laughs uncontrollably as she watches all this happen.   
  
Once she calms down she walks over to Lexa. "Did you put it in your pocket because you knew they would try to leave without washing the dishes?"  
  
Lexa nods, a proud smile on her face.  
  
"Smart, I never would have thought of that and I've known them most of my life." She giggles. "You're really good at reading people." It was a statement rather than a question but Lexa still nodded her head in agreement.   
  
They lock eyes again and Lexa starts to think that this is their way of communicating, like they're having a conversation that they can't hear.  
  
Raven walks back into the room having completed her work, Octavia is still drying the dishes in the kitchen. She walks over to Lexa and places a hand on her shoulder, Lexa looks at her hand and arches her brow before looking up at Raven again. "You're lucky I like you, otherwise I would have to beat your ass for making me work." She removes her hand from Lexa's shoulder.  
  
Lexa crosses her arms over her chest and gives Raven a look that says 'I dare you to try'.  
  
"Oooh feisty, I like you even more now Woods." Raven smiles, Lexa returns the smile.  
  
Octavia joins them. "Reyes, let's get out of here before we're ordered to do more work."

"Ok, come over around 7, alright?" Raven directs the question at Lexa rather than Clarke, she already knows Clarke will be there but she wants Lexa to know that they really do enjoy her company and want her to hang out with them. It's strange because they've never really wanted anyone else to join their group but Lexa is different, she doesn't know what it is about Lexa that she likes so much but she really does want her as a friend. She just hopes Lexa wants to be their friend too.  
  
Lexa nods confidently and Raven knows she will definitely be there.  
  
"Maybe we should cook so they have to wash our dishes." Octavia nudges Raven as she says it.  
  
Clarke let's out a loud laugh which startles the other three girls. "That's a good one O. You and Raven cooking, that will  _never_  happen."  
  
Octavia takes a moment to think before she replies. "Yeah you're right but we could order take out and put it on plates so there will still be dishes to clean."  
  
"We still won't have to do any work, the whole reason you two have to wash the dishes is to thank me for cooking for you two so unless you cook a meal for us you will never get us to work for you." Clarke sticks out her tongue at them.  
  
"Ok, ok I get it, you have us trapped, whatever, Raven let's go." The disappointment Octavia feels by losing to Clarke is written all over her face.  
  
"See you tonight dork, you too Woods." Raven calls out as she follows Octavia out the door.  
  
Clarke didn't have time to respond before the door shut. She turns to Lexa. "You sure you're ok with hanging out with us tonight? I don't want you to feel like you have to do something you don't want to, I mean, it would be great to hang out but only if you want-" She stops talking when she feels Lexa's hand grip onto her arm, she looks up to see Lexa giving her a wide smile.   
  
Lexa nods at Clarke so that she knows she wants to hang out with them tonight. Clarke smiles back at her. Lexa's hand is still on Clarke's arm, as soon as she realizes this she retracts her hand and shoves it into her pocket.

"I guess you've got to unpack your stuff today." Lexa nods. Clarke hesitates before speaking again. "Do you want some help?" Lexa thinks about it for a minute.  
  
Clarke's unsure of whether she should take back the offer _'I could pretend I just remembered that I have a doctor's appointment or something'_  she thinks. Before she can take it back she sees Lexa nodding and giving her a grateful look.  
  
"Great. Let's get started." Clarke follows Lexa to her bedroom.

 

* * *

 

_Meanwhile on the other side of the door._

 

"Spill it O, what's going on?"

"Shit Raven, at least wait until we're out of the hallway so they can't hear us."

They enter their apartment. As soon as the door closes Raven speaks again. "Now, tell me what I'm missing."

"Oh my god Raven it's so obvious, how did you not see it?"  
  
"See what?"  
  
"Ok I'm going to start from the beginning, you saw how Clarke reacted when she saw Lexa yesterday, right?"  
  
"Yeah....?"  
  
"Did you see the blinding smile on Lexa's face when Clarke said it was nice to meet her? We didn't get a smile like that when we introduced ourselves."  
  
"True but we're not her roommate's, maybe it was just because Clarke is her roommate and she wanted to make a good impression or something?"  
  
"Nope." She said cheerfully. "There is so much more to this story Raven the best part is yet to come, so be patient."  
  
Raven let out a huff. "Fine."  
  
"Ok so when we got the pizza, you saw them staring at each other again, right?"  
  
"Yes."  
  
"Well later on I noticed something much more surprising than their quick staring contests. How do I explain this?" She asks herself this rather than asking Raven, she thinks for a few seconds before continuing. "You know when we're shopping and Clarke sees something that fascinates her but its really expensive and she wants to touch it but she's afraid she'll break it so she just shoves her hands in her pockets to stop herself from reaching out and touching it?"   
  
"Not sure where this is going but yes."  
  
"When we were watching movies last night, I was going to look over at Lexa to see if she was still ok or if she was uncomfortable because I wasn't really sure if we were pushing her limits by hanging around for so long and-"  
  
"O, you're rambling."  
  
"Sorry, thanks for stopping me, anyways instead of looking at Lexa I ended up looking at Clarke and she definitely wasn't paying attention to the movie, she was completely focused on Lexa, which was strange on its own but then I noticed her hands. Raven, she was sitting on her hands, not in a normal way or anything, it was more like she had to put all of her weight on her hands to stop them from reaching over to touch Lexa."  
  
Raven's mouth hung open in shock. "WHAT?!"  
  
"Shh Raven, keep your voice down they might hear you." Octavia pleaded.  
  
"Sorry it's just.....whoa, you know?"  
  
Octavia hums her agreement.  
  
"It's been years since Griffin has been shown any interest in anyone. I honestly wasn't sure she was ever going to be interested in anyone in that way ever again." Raven confesses. She had been worried about Clarke's love life ever since her and Finn broke up. After the break up she didn't want to talk or hear of anything to do with love for so long that it had become normal to them now. Octavia and Raven could speak of love and relationships while they were alone but around Clarke they never spoke about those things. "But now that I think about it, even with Finn she didn't act like that, I don't think she ever just wanted to reach out and touch him."  
  
"I was wondering....." Octavia trails off, she seems to be deep in thought. "I don't want this to sound bad but do you think she'll even know that she is attracted to her? I mean it's just been so long, will she recognize it as an attraction or will she just mistake it for a very close friendship?"  
  
"I don't really know O. Right now, I would say she doesn't know it yet, they did only meet yesterday after all but when the time comes and she starts to feel that attraction more strongly at least we can help her figure it out....wait...." Raven pauses for a moment. "Do you think she'll talk to us about it? It's been a long time since we talked about that stuff with Clarke, what if she feels like she can't talk to us about it?"  
  
"Raven don't be ridiculous, we'll be the only people she'll talk to about it."  
  
"Yeah, you're right." She smiles while she thinks of how close the three of them are. "Hold on, wasn't this talk supposed to be about why Clarke was Lexa's favourite person?"  
  
"Oh right yeah, well it's basically the same thing for Lexa before we started watching movies while we were talking she was mainly focused on Clarke even when it was me or you talking she kept looking at Clarke and then halfway through the second movie when Clarke started watching the movie instead of Lexa she started staring at Clarke, not in the way Clarke was looking at her, she seems to be far more in control of her hands but she was looking at her like she was committing all of Clarke to memory and then you saw that whole thing with the note a while ago when she was touching the drawing like it was the most amazing thing she had ever seen."

"What is it with these two and touching." Raven joked. "Oh now I get why you told me to watch them, the staring thing they kept doing that whenever one of them wasn't looking."

"Yup they are kind of obsessed with each other."  
  
"Whoa so this is not an unrequited crush? Lexa likes Clarke too?"

"Yup" Octavia says, popping the 'p'.

"So do we talk to Clarke about this?"

"Jesus, No Raven, you know what Clarke's like, if we tell her she'll get all defensive and try to hide her feelings. We have to wait until she tells us, then we can tell her we know and Lexa's crushing on her too."

"OH MY GOD" Raven yelled so loudly that Octavia was sure the entire population of Arkadia heard it. "Clarke fucking likes Lexa and Lexa fucking likes Clarke."

"Raven keep your damn voice down they'll hear you."

Almost as soon as she said it Clarke burst through the door with Lexa right behind her. The two brunettes noticed that Lexa had her fists raised ready to fight whatever she found in the apartment, they smiled because they knew then that Lexa liked them enough to protect them.

"What? what happened?" Clarke's voice  was full of concern.

"Uhh..." Raven had no idea what to say.

"Nothing, sorry to freak you out, Raven thought she saw a rat." Octavia managed to think up the excuse quick enough that the two might believe it.

"Eww where?" Clarke's eyes darted around the ground looking for it. She clearly believed it but Lexa was good at reading people as Clarke had said and she knew that Octavia was lying.

"No, there's no rat Clarke it was actually just a...shoe, Raven thought it was a rat." Octavia could see the suspicious look Lexa was giving her and she started to get nervous.

"Oh thank god." Clarke visibly relaxed hearing that there was no rat. "Well at least we'll know if there ever is one, I'm pretty sure even my mom heard Raven shouting." Clarke chuckled. Lexa looked at her affectionately as she did, unknowingly providing the two brunettes with more evidence of her feelings.

Raven gripped Octavia's arm trying to suppress the excitement she felt now that she knew what was going on.

Octavia whimpered when Raven tightened her grip. Raven quickly loosened her grip and retracted her hand but Clarke and Lexa had already noticed how tightly Raven held her arm.

"Raven what the hell did you do to O's arm?" They all look at Octavia's arm and see faint bruises appearing.

"Oh god O, I'm so sorry I didn't mean to hurt you." 

The pained look on Raven's face was enough to make Octavia forgive her without thinking twice about it. "Relax Reyes, it'll take a lot more than a squeeze to break me." 

"Why were you holding on to her?"

"Emm..I was still afraid there was a rat, I guess?" She's usually good at thinking up excuses but every thing she's learned today has blown her mind and she's not able to concentrate on anything other than what Octavia told her. 

"Right." Clarke says narrowing her eyes suspiciously. "Well me and Lex are going to leave now, if you see another shoe please try not to scream so loudly." Clarke teases Raven.

Lexa's heart fluttered again hearing Clarke shorten her name the same way her family does. She took it as a sign that they were becoming friends. She felt so many emotions swirly around in her at the thought of having friends again, friends who liked her even though she didn't speak, she could feel tears beginning to form in her eyes and quickly calmed herself before they could fall. She was so caught up in her own thoughts that she didn't realize Clarke had been speaking to her. Clarke touched her gently on her arm to bring her back out of her thoughts.

"You ok?"

Lexa directed an affectionate smile towards Clarke, still somewhat stuck in her thoughts, she quickly replaces it with a shy look and a light blush appeared on her cheeks. She feels embarrassed until she sees Clarke's lips stretch into a sweet and gentle smile. Lexa felt as though Clarke knew what she was thinking about and knew the range of emotions she was feeling as a result of those thoughts.

It's almost too much for Raven and Octavia to handle, they struggle to keep their excitement contained. They watch the two silently, neither one of them willing or wanting to interrupt whatever was going on between the two. Raven pulls out her phone as sneakily as she can. Octavia gives her a pleading look begging her not to do what she knows she is about to do but she can see the mischievous glint in Raven's eyes and she knows nothing could stop her now. The room is filled with a flash of light and Raven knows she has made a mistake, the one thing she should have thought of doing was making sure the flash setting was off.  _'I'm not a very smart genius'_  she told herself.

"What was that about Raven?" Clarke looks at her, confused and a little blinded from the flash.

Raven freezes for a few seconds before thinking of an excuse. "Me and O were just trying to take a selfie together since we look so damn good today." She smiles playfully. "Must have forgotten to change to the front facing camera." She shrugs.

Clarke stares at her like she is looking directly into her soul trying to figure out if that's the truth. Raven thinks she must have an incredible poker face when Clarke accepts the explanation.

"Ok, we're going now before you blind us again."

Lexa waves to the two brunettes and leads the way to the door.

"Later losers." Clarke says, closing the door behind her.

Octavia smacks Raven lightly on the side of her head. "Are you crazy? What the hell were you thinking?" Octavia quietly yells at her making sure that Lexa and Clarke don't hear her.

"Calm down O." She rubs the spot on her head where Octavia had slapped her. "I was thinking that our best friend and our new friend were being cute and I wanted a picture of it for the slideshow I'm going make for their wedding." 

"Whoa Raven, I think you're the one that needs to calm down, they barely know each other and you're already planning their wedding?!"

"Don't try to act like you don't see it happening, you saw all that too, the adoring looks and brilliant smiles, they might not know it yet but they are crazy about each other." She crosses her arms over her chest and gives Octavia a look that silently says 'I dare you to prove it's not true'.

Octavia sighs. "Fine, you're right, they are wonderfully adorable together and it warms my heart to see how cute they are but you seriously need to get control of yourself or they'll get suspicious, this is something they need to figure out themselves, all we can do is enjoy watching them fall in love."

"God, it's going to take them forever to figure it out, isn't it?"

"Yup but they will get there eventually as long as we don't push them, it's alright to drop little hints every now and then but we can't be too obvious." Octavia wonders whether it's a good idea to say what she wants to say next. She finally decides it will be ok. "I suppose if you are careful and remember to turn the flash off then you can continue taking pictures of them together."

"YES!!!" Raven raises her arms in triumph. "We can make a scrapbook for them."

Octavia chuckles. "You know you're a nerd, right?"

"Yeah, I'm a hot nerd though, right?"

" _Sure._ " Octavia says sarcastically, she giggles when Raven scowls at her. "I'm just kidding, of course you're a hot nerd."

Raven stays silent for a moment while she thinks of something. "You know O, I bet they're being cute again right now."

"You're not going over there Raven, you'll see them tonight, let them have some alone time."

 

* * *

 

_A few hours later._

 

Clarke and Lexa have just finished unpacking all of Lexa's stuff. They're both exhausted from it so they drop themselves on the couch, happy to finally be able to relax.

"How does it feel to be officially moved in?"

Lexa gives her a thumbs up and a lazy smile in response.

"That's good, I'm glad you chose to live here instead of in the dorms, we probably never would have met otherwise." Clarke realizes how that sounds and corrects herself so that Lexa knows she means her and her two best friends. "Who would Raven teach all her bad behaviour to then?" She lets out a short, soft laugh.

Lexa thinks about today and yesterday, everything that's happened since she first stood outside the door of her new apartment. Octavia and Raven made her feel welcome before she even stepped into the apartment for the first time and they even helped her move all her stuff in. Then she met the wonderful and beautiful Clarke who was just as welcoming as her two best friends were. They only asked questions she could answer with a simple hand gesture, nod or shake of her head. Then they ordered two pizzas because they didn't know what kind she liked. They talked for almost an hour and made sure that she always felt included in the conversation. They watched movies with her after they made sure she was comfortable doing so.

Then today Clarke made her a delicious breakfast. She made them laugh. Clarke said she liked her just the way she is. Raven made sure she knew that she was welcome to hang out with them by inviting her over to their place. She made Clarke laugh uncontrollably when she used the note against Raven and Octavia. Raven said she liked her twice. Clarke helped her unpack her stuff. Then when she heard Raven yell she felt a need to protect Octavia and Raven from whatever made Raven scream. She felt relieved when she found out they were not in danger. Then she had some sort of special moment with Clarke. For the last few hours Clarke had continued helping her unpack her stuff. Now Clarke was telling her she was glad she moved in with her.

Lexa has no idea what she did to deserve such amazing people in her life but she is glad to have them as friends. She has only known them for a little over twenty-four hours but she knows that they are special to her already.

She decides that she wants to do something to show them how thankful she is. She spends a few minutes coming up with different idea's before finally deciding what to do. She has a few more hours before she has to go over to Raven and Octavia's and she knows she'll have just enough time to organize it. She jumps up from her spot on the couch. 

"You ok?" Clarke can't understand what made Lexa jump up so quickly.

Lexa nods and then runs to her room only to come back out of it seconds later. She walks over to the couch, shows Clarke her keys and points towards the door.

"Oh, you're leaving?" Clarke tries her best not to sound disappointed but it doesn't work.

Lexa gives her a guilty look. She feels bad hearing the disappointment in Clarke's voice but she also feels good knowing Clarke doesn't want her to go. She really wants to do something nice for her three new friends. She has an idea, she pulls ten dollars out of her pocket and shows it to Clarke.

Clarke looks at the ten dollars, confused by what Lexa's trying to do, then she figures it out. "Oh you're going shopping."

Lexa smiles proudly at Clarke and nods. Only Clarke could understand what she was doing.

"Will you be gone for long?" Clarke worries that she shouldn't have asked this.  _'Lexa is allowed to go wherever she wants whenever she wants, it's none of your business where she's going or how long she will be gone for'_  Clarke thought.

Lexa shakes her head so that Clarke knows she will be back soon. 

Clarke nods her head once and smiles. "Alright, then I'll see you soon."

Lexa waves at Clarke before rushing out the door.

Clarke isn't sure what to do while Lexa's gone, it's silly really because if Lexa didn't leave they probably would have just sat in silence relaxing on the couch. She knows she can do that on her own but there's just something so comforting about having Lexa there. She decides to hang out with Raven and Octavia until Lexa comes back.

She walks across the hall, walking into the apartment without knocking.

Since they had moved into the building three weeks ago they would only ever lock their door at night or when they were gone out somewhere because they knew Clarke would come and go from their apartment whenever she wanted to. They had all lived together the year before but they decided that since this building was closer to the university they would draw straws and see who lived with a new roommate. Clarke got the short straw which she wasn't happy about at the time but now she couldn't be happier that she did.

Raven spots Clarke first. "You're a little early for movie night Clarke, I thought you would be spending all your time with Lexa until then?" It comes out as a question rather than a statement.

"Well I was going to but she's gone."

"She's gone?! where did she go?! Please tell me you two didn't get in a fight."

"Relax Raven, she's just gone shopping she'll be back soon."

Raven relaxes instantly but now instead of being worried she becomes confused. "How do you know all that?"

"She kind of showed me, I guess. She showed me her keys and money."

"Only you could understand that Clarke, Lexa is so lucky that you ended up with the short straw."

Clarke smiles knowing her and Lexa have their own unique way of communicating that even Raven and Octavia don't understand feels good for some reason.

Octavia enters the room and sees Clarke. "Hey Clarke, you're early." She looks behind Clarke expecting to see Lexa but she doesn't. "Where's Lexa?"

Raven chooses to answer her question. "Lexa's gone shopping but she'll be back soon. We know all this information because Lexa showed Clarke her keys and money."

"Ok.....?"

"I don't know how to explain it O, it just makes sense to me." Clarke really doesn't know how Lexa can tell her so much without saying a single word.

"It's ok, I get it, you and Lexa have a special bond and you understand her better than either of us could, good thing you got the short straw."

"I said the same thing." Raven and Octavia high five.

They look back to Clarke, they can see that she has zoned out and seems to be deep in thought.

"Can we say stuff now that she's not paying attention?"

"Raven stop, she might still be able to hear us."

"Clarke if you don't say anything in the next five seconds you owe me twenty bucks. 1...2...3...4...5 HA!! She can't hear a word we're saying and now I'm twenty bucks richer."

"We're still not talking about this while we're in the same room as her."

Raven pouts. "Fine, I'll just go look out at the parking lot until Lexa gets back, then I'll get to be the one to tell Clarke that Lexa has returned to her and watch her pretty face light up with joy." She crosses over to the window that overlooks the building's parking lot.

As soon as she notices that someone has said Lexa's name she rejoins the conversation. "What did you say about Lexa?"

Raven gave Octavia a knowing look before answering Clarke. "I was just saying I'll watch out for Lexa while I'm over here."

"Oh ok." There's a hint of disappointment in Clarke's voice which both Raven and Octavia notice straightaway. Clarke sits on the couch, Octavia sits down next to her.

"How has living with Lexa been so far?" Octavia asks her, already knowing the answer won't be a bad one.

"Great, I helped her unpack all her stuff today."

"Really? She was ok with that?" Raven asked from her spot at the window.

"Emm yeah, well I offered and she took a minute to think about it but she accepted so I guess she was. I learned a lot about her while we were unpacking."

"Like what?" Octavia asks.

"Well she's got a lot of workout stuff, weights mostly, so she must workout a lot otherwise why would she bother bringing that stuff?"

"I was wondering why some of those boxes were so heavy. She had to take one of them off me when I was struggling to hold on to it, if she didn't grab it before it fell I would probably have a broken foot right now."

"She does look like someone who works out but I don't know how physically fit she is really, I haven't seen her arms bare yet because she's been wearing that leather jacket all day, even while we were unpacking."

"Oh, I know." Raven's practically leaping where she's standing. "We'll get this place to be as hot as possible tonight and she'll have to take it off."

"As far as Raven Reyes plans go that one has to be the simplest and the safest yet."

"Unless she decides the only way to get the room hot enough is by starting a fire." Clarke says seriously, they all know Raven has a tendency to go a little crazy.

"Hey!!! I'm not an idiot, I'm not going to start a fire."

"What are you planning to do then?"

Raven takes some time to think about it. "We could turn up the heat just enough to make it too hot to wear a leather jacket but not enough to kill us."

"I was fine with that plan up until you said the part about it possibly killing us."

"Don't worry Clarkey if the genius tries to do something stupid I'll stop her."

They both expected some sort of retort from their friend but when one didn't come they looked at her to discover a stunned look on her face.

"Are you ok Raven?" Clarke asked.

"O, what kind of car did you say Lexa has?" Raven is currently watching Lexa pulling shopping bags out of her car but she can't believe what she's seeing is real.

Octavia realizes what is going on so she decides to have a little fun. "I didn't say what kind of car she has."

"Then tell me what her car looks like O."

"It's blue."

Clarke looks between her friends confused by whatever's happening. 

"O don't mess with me. What make and model is Lexa's car?"

"Lexa car is a...." She bangs her hands repeatedly on the table creating a drum roll before she finally tells Raven. "1969 Chevrolet Camaro."

Raven squeals excitedly causing her two friends to cover their ears. "Oh my fucking god." She says before taking off out the door of the apartment to go to the parking lot. The two other girls follow closely behind her.

"Woods, how are you so fucking cool?" She almost screams at Lexa as she reaches the car.

Lexa has a bewildered look on her face.

"You were a hot badass before this but now-" She stops when she finally notices the bewildered look on her face. "Oh you need me to explain?"

Lexa nods. 

"You're hot because well, look at you." Lexa turns red from embarrassment.

"Aww how cute she didn't realize she was hot." Octavia adds.

"The badass part is because you challenged me when I said I'd have to beat your ass, no one has ever had the balls to challenge me before and then you came into our apartment ready for a fight when you heard me scream so yeah, you're a hot badass but now you're a hot badass with one of the coolest car's in the world. Screw these two." She points to Octavia and Clarke next to her. "You're my new best friend."

"I would argue about that but she's right you are cooler than us and Raven deserves a cool best friend so you have our blessing" Octavia says playfully. "But you also have to be me and Clarke's best friend too."

"I agree. Do you accept our terms Lexa?" Clarke asks with a smile.

Lexa smiles brightly and nods her head vigorously.

"Well then Lexa, our new best friend, would you like help with your bags?" Octavia asks.

Lexa smiles again when she hears Octavia calling her not only a friend but a best friend. She holds out some bags for Octavia to take.

"Are you done ogling Lexa's car yet Raven?" Clarke asks while taking a few bags from Lexa.

"No, I will never stop admiring this beauty but since it's cold let's get inside, I can stare at the car again tomorrow." Raven glances at Clarke after she says this before looking back at the car and then at Lexa.

Octavia can tell from the way Raven looked at them and the way she straightened her posture that Raven has just thought of something. Raven glances at Octavia quickly before she looks back at Lexa again. From the look in Raven's eyes Octavia can see that she's about to do something risky, she doesn't know what it is which worries her but her curiosity stops her from interfering with whatever it is Raven's about to do.  

"Lexa is this your favourite colour?" Raven points to the hood of the car.

Lexa nods.

"Hmm same colour as Clarke's eyes, do you like Clarke's eyes?"

Lexa starts nodding before Raven even finishes her question. She feels her cheeks burning from embarrassment again and she lowers her head hoping the other girls won't notice.

Clarke doesn't question why Raven asked her that, she's completely focused on Lexa. She replays the question and Lexa's response over and over again in her mind, a dopey grin has formed on her face.

Raven slowly backs away from the two girls just enough so that they can't see her, she pulls out her phone, checks to make sure that the flash is off this time and takes a picture of them before putting her phone back in her pocket. Octavia mouths the words 'good job' at Raven who dramatically bows in response causing Octavia to giggle. 

The two girls look at Octavia confused about why she's giggling, waiting for her to explain.

"Bye Beautiful." Raven says to the car as she strokes the hood of it, taking the focus off of Octavia. "Well Ladies I'm done now, let's go."

They all take some of the bags and head upstairs to Lexa and Clarke's apartment. They bring all the bags into the kitchen and Octavia and Raven go back to their own apartment leaving the two roommates alone.

"You want help unpacking all this stuff?"

Lexa rushes over to Clarke and ushers her out of the room.

"Ok....?"

Lexa points at Clarke, then the kitchen and then she places a hand over her own eyes.

"I can't see? Oh it's a surprise?"

Lexa nods.

"What's it for?" Clarke feels bad after asking this because she's not sure Lexa can answer that.

Lexa points at Clarke again, then she points to the door and holds up two fingers.

"For me, O and Raven?"

Lexa nods again.

"That's sweet but you know you don't have to do that, right?"

Lexa nods before she puts her hand on Clarke's shoulder, she places her other hand over her heart and bows her head slightly. She really hopes Clarke knows what she's trying to say but she knows that it's unlikely she will.

Clarke tries to work out what it means in her mind. This is the toughest one to figure out so far but Clarke really wants to know what it is Lexa's trying to tell her. She thinks that if she can understand this then it will be proof that they really do have a unique bond. "You know you don't have to but you want to?" 

Lexa nods slowly like she's waiting for Clarke to continue. 

"And you want to do this to thank us?"

Lexa smiles proudly at Clarke before nodding. Lexa knows now that Clarke is special, Clarke understands her better than anyone else in this world ever could.

Clarke has her own proud smile showing. "I'll give you some space then. I'll go hang out with Raven and O for a while. If you need anything come get me, ok?"

Lexa nods again and gives Clarke a quick wave before going back into the kitchen.

Clarke heads straight over to the other apartment.

"Well I know she's not gone anywhere this time, what's up Griff?" Raven asks from her position by the window, she's been admiring Lexa's car from a distance since she returned to their apartment.

"Lexa's working on a surprise for us so I said I'd give her some space."

"A surprise? What for?" Octavia asks as Clarke sits down next to her on the couch.

"To thank us."

"Aww that's so sweet, she knows that she doesn't have to do that though, right?"

"Yeah I told her that but she told me she wants to do it."

"How did she tell you that?" Raven really doesn't know how Clarke manages to get so much information out of Lexa.

"Come here, I'll show you."

Raven walks over to Clarke who stands up and repeats the gestures Lexa used to tell her. Octavia and Raven look at each other both equally confused before Raven turns her attention back to Clarke. "Like I said earlier Griff, only you could understand that."

"Yeah I think that special bond you two have is even stronger than any of us thought. I'm glad you two met."

"Me too. It's great being able to communicate with her through hand movements and looks. It's like I'm learning a secret language that only me and her know. She's incredible."

"You know she probably thinks you're incredible too being able to understand her like that. I mean, me and Raven can figure out most of what she's telling us but you get so much more out of her, it's like she knows you'll get whatever she's trying to say."

"Oh I actually wanted to thank you two for being so good to Lexa. The way you welcomed her and made her feel included in conversations, inviting her over tonight and even the stuff in the parking lot, when you said you wanted her to be our new best friend I know all of it is special and important to Lexa. I get the feeling that no one has really given her a chance when she doesn't speak and you have made her feel wanted and accepted. I'm glad she met you two before me. You really are the best friends in the world."

"Aww thanks Griff but I was serious when I said Lexa's my new best friend she's way cooler than you dorks." Raven joked.

"You're the only dork in this group Reyes." Raven playfully glared at Octavia. "Seriously though we like Lexa so you don't have to thank us, we should be thanking you for bringing her into our lives."

"She's really happy to have you two as friends, I can tell."

"We know, she likes having you in her life too, you know that right?" Octavia purposely leaves out 'as a friend' because she doesn't want Clarke to think that's all they are.

Clarke hums. "Yeah, I know."

 

* * *

 

_Two hours later._

 

"Hey, I'm back." Clarke calls into the apartment.

Lexa appears in front of her moments later.

"Raven sent me back to get you, she said she misses her 'only cool best friend' those were her exact words." Clarke smiles when she sees Lexa's lips curl up into a smile. "You nearly done yet?"

Lexa nods her head.

"Need some more time?"

Lexa nods again.

"Want me to tell them to hold off on starting the movie's for a while?"

Lexa shakes her head and points to the door.

"You want us to start without you?"

She nods.

"Well that's not happening, movie night does not start until all four members of our group are present. We'll just talk some more until you're ready, ok?"

Lexa has a dazzling smile on her face after hearing Clarke confirm she is a member of their group.

"Alright, I'll see you soon." Clarke smiles softly before turning around and heading back to the other apartment.

As soon as Lexa hears the other door close she speaks for the first time in two days. "Clarke." She states her name firmly as if she had just made an important decision and was sure of the choice she had made. She doesn't know why she said it but she decides not to think too much of it and gets back to preparing the surprise.

 

* * *

 

_Forty minutes later._

 

"Ok, seriously, where is Woods?"

"Relax Raven she'll be over soon." Clarke reassures her.

Without another word Raven gets up from the couch, walks out the door and into Lexa's apartment.

"Woods, where are you? The fierce four isn't the same without you."

Lexa enters the room with a questioning look on her face.

"You don't know what the fierce four is?"

Lexa shakes her head.

"I used to call our little group the troublesome trio, Griff and O never liked when I called us that but that never stopped me, since you're part of it now I decided we are now the fierce four. You like the name?"

Lexa nods.

"That's why you're my favourite, Woods." Raven states with a proud smile. Her expression turns serious seconds later. "I'm really glad you're our friend Lexa." She turns her head away from Lexa slightly after she says it because she's not sure how Lexa will react to her saying that.

Lexa puts her hand on Ravens arm and gives it a light squeeze.

Raven looks up to see Lexa's gentle smile and she knows Lexa is trying to show her that she feels the same way.

"Well that's good then." She states firmly, trying to subdue her emotions. "So" She clears her throat "is the surprise ready yet?"

Lexa nods once, points at herself, then Raven, she holds out both hands and acts like she is carrying something heavy.

"You want me to help carry it?"

Lexa nods and motions for Raven to follow her.

Once they walk into the kitchen Raven's eyes widen. "Jesus Woods, there's so much food here." She looks closer and notices how the plates are organized. "Oh, you cooked us a three course meal?" She looks to Lexa who confirms that she is right. "That's sweet Lexa, thank you, it all looks amazing." She gives Lexa a grateful smile. "Let me open the doors before we start carrying it over." Raven makes her way out of the kitchen, she opens both doors. "Ladies, you are going to love the surprise." She shouts into the other apartment before returning to help Lexa.

They each carry two plates into the other apartment, it takes three trips back and forth to bring all twelve plates over. Octavia and Clarke watch with wide eyes as each new course arrives.

Their first course is mini pizza bites. The second is steak cooked to perfection with roasted carrots, peas and fries. The third course is chocolate chip cookie dough cheesecake

They all sit together in front of the TV. They quickly get through their appetizers, eager to get to the main meal while it's still hot. A chorus of satisfied sounds fill the apartment as they eat. By the time they finish the main course they all feel too full to eat any more but they have seen the dessert already and after the first and second course they know it will be just as delicious as the rest was so they aĺl decide they have enough room left in their stomachs to get through it.

"Damn Woods, you're an amazing cook. Now I've got to add that to the list too." Lexa sends Raven a confused look. "You're a hot badass who's also an amazing cook and has one of the coolest car's in the world." Raven clarifies.

"Yeah Lex, you might be even better than Clarkey." Octavia adds.

Lexa shakes her head, points to Clarke, then rubs her own stomach and smiles.

"Are you saying Clarke is delicious?" Raven knows what Lexa is saying but she thinks she can use this as a way to show Lexa's feelings for Clarke again. 

Both Lexa and Clarke turn bright red and quickly look away from each other.

After a moment Clarke corrects Raven. "She was saying that she thinks my cooking is delicious but I agree with Raven and O, you're a far better cook than I am."

Lexa looks back at Clarke again and shakes her head. Clarke nods hers in response which leads to a battle between the two, Lexa shaking her head and Clarke nodding until Octavia and Raven put a stop to it by grabbing one of their heads each and holding them still.

"Ok, if you two keep this up one of you will end up getting hurt so let's say it's a draw and you're both equally amazing, agreed?" Octavia manages to stay serious until they both reluctantly agree at which point she can't help but laugh. "You're like two big kids."

"And we're your two mommies." Raven happily proclaims.

The three girls laugh and Lexa fights to hold back her own laughter. They settle down again and start watching another movie. Twenty minutes into the movie Raven spots Lexa shifting slightly in her and she looks over to see if she's ok, that's when she realizes that she had totally forgotten about the plan to get her to take off her jacket. She scolds herself for forgetting. She knows she can't go through with it now because Lexa might get suspicious. She tries to come up with a new plan. "Are you cold Griff?"

Clarke looks at Raven with her brow furrowed. Raven looks to Lexa and back at Clarke. Then Clarke sees what Raven is trying to do. "Yeah, now that you mention it I am a bit cold, if only I had remembered to bring a jacket."

"Just go take one of mine or Raven's." Octavia hadn't caught on to what the two were trying to do.

They both turn to Octavia to glare at her but Clarke turns back around when she feels Lexa's hand on her arm. Lexa holds her jacket in her other hand offering it to Clarke.

"Thanks Lex, you're the best." Clarke happily takes the jacket and puts it on, taking a moment to enjoy the warmth of it before she sneakily looks at Lexa's arms. It's very clear to Clarke now that Lexa does use those weights in her room and very often. _'I wonder if she could carry me.'_ Clarke thinks before she adds _'only if I ever needed her to of course, like if I hurt my leg or something.'_ She was so busy thinking about Lexa's strength she hadn't noticed the tattoo until she focused back on Lexa's arm again. Clarke desperately wants to reach out and run her finger along it tracing the design, she has a hard time controlling her own hands and she has to sit on them for the second time since meeting Lexa. She doesn't understand what it is about this girl that makes her want to touch her so badly.

Octavia finally understands what Raven and Clarke were doing. She watches Clarke ogling Lexa's arms and for the second time sees her best friend sitting on her hands. Raven spots it as soon as it happens too, she grabs Octavia's arm again lightly this time and soon Raven's phone makes another appearance. _'It's been one day and I already have three cute pictures of them.'_ She thinks before adding _'Yup, definitely soulmates.'_

Clarke focuses on the TV for the rest of the movie marathon, afraid of allowing her thoughts to go too far or letting her hands touch her new roommate.

 

* * *

 

"Today was fun Lex, I like hanging out with you, so do O and Raven." She gives Lexa a sleepy smile which Lexa mimics. 

"And thank you for the wonderful meal, you really are an amazing cook." 

Lexa gives her a shy smile. 

Clake lets out a loud yawn. "We better get to bed now it's pretty late, I'll see you in the morning and you know if you need anything you can come get me, right?"

Lexa nods.

"Good." Clarke yawns again. "Goodnight Lexa."

Lexa waves as she heads into her own room and quickly gets ready for bed.

"Best friends." Lexa says out loud before falling asleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading this. I accidentally deleted this chapter three times and I thought of giving up completely each time but I stuck with it and it's finally done.


	4. Home

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Octavia and Lexa have some bonding time.

_The next morning._

 

Lexa is woken up by the sound of a message notification on her phone. She waits until her eyes have adjusted to the sunlight now filling the room before she picks her phone up off the bedside table. The first thing she notices is the time, for the second day in a row she has slept until after 11am. She makes a mental note to start setting an alarm at night. The second thing she notices is that she has three missed calls from Anya and twelve new messages.

**Anya (7:45)**  
**Ok little Lexi I gave you two full days to get yourself settled now I want info. What's the roommate like? Is it better than your last living arrangement or do I have to kick her ass?**

**Anya (8:18)**  
**Lex, I know you're awake, answer me.**

**Anya (8:52)**  
**You can't ignore me forever.**

**Anya (9:33)**  
**There is no way you're still asleep, answer me NOW.**

**Anya (10:01)**  
**LEXA!!!!!!!!!!!**

**Anya (10:27)**  
**I'm starting to worry.**

**Anya (10:37)**  
**If you don't answer me I'm going to assume your roommate is some creep that has you held hostage and I'm going to have to drive all the way to Arkadia to make sure you're safe so just answer me, please.**

**Linc (10:51)**  
**Hey Lex, Anya asked me to text you, she's freaking out because you're not answering her, I told her you're probably just asleep but she pointed out that you always wake up at 7am so now I'm worried, please let us know that you're ok.**

**Indra (10:57)**  
**Lexa, are you alright? We're worried, please answer.**

**Gustus (11:00)**  
**Are you ok Lexa? Anya has us all freaked out.**

**Thelonious (11:03)**  
**Hi Lexa, your cousin called me, she's worried about you. Are you alright?**

**Alie (11:05)**  
**Hey Lexa, Anya called. I just want to let you know that if you need to talk you can call me, ok?**

Lexa groans when she finishes reading all the messages. She loves her cousin but sometimes she is just way too protective.

She sends them all the same text.

**Lexa (11:14)**  
**Hey, sorry to worry you, I just overslept everything's fine, my roommate is great, no problems here whatsoever.**

Anya gets a different text.

**Lexa (11:16)**  
**What the hell Anya?! You can't just freak out like that if I don't answer a couple of texts. I was asleep, not being held hostage, not injured, not dead, just asleep.**

**Anya (11:17)**  
**How was I supposed to know that? You've woken up at 7am everyday for the last two years, was I supposed to assume that you would change that when you moved there? I think it was completely reasonable for me to react the way I did.**

**Lexa (11:17)**  
**Anya you called the Jaha's, I knew you would tell Gus, Indra and Linc when you were worried but I didn't think you'd involve them too, if I hadn't responded by tonight then you could tell them but there's loads of reasons that I wouldn't be able to respond, how do you even have their numbers?**

**Anya (11:18)**  
**They are family too you're the one that said that so I told the whole family and I have their numbers for that exact reason, they are family.**

Lexa let's out a frustrated sigh after she reads this message. She knows how difficult it is arguing with Anya.

**Lexa (11:21)**  
**Yes they are family but that doesn't mean you can scare them when I don't answer your messages right away. I'll be starting college in a week Anya, there's going to be a lot of times when you'll have to wait a while before I text back and I don't want you doing this every time.**

**Anya (11:22)**  
**Oh so it's ok to scare mom, dad and Linc as long as I don't freak out the Jaha's? I know all that but you haven't started college yet, that's why I was worried, there should have been nothing to stop you from answering me. I know that you were asleep now but I didn't then.**

**Lexa (11:23)**  
**Indra, Gus and Linc know what you're like and they know not to assume I'm dead whenever you freak out but the Jaha's don't know you well enough to know that Anya. What did you think happened to me?**

**Anya (11:23)**  
**I thought your roommate turned out to be some creep and did something to you or that the roommate said something to hurt you and that you were upset because of it.**

Lexa gets two new messages but she knows if she doesn't respond to Anya quick enough she will get angry and Lexa does not want to deal with an angry Anya so she ignores them for now.

**Lexa (11:24)**  
**I can tell you that my roommate is not a creep and she has not done or said anything to hurt me and she won't. You don't have to worry, she is different.**

**Anya (11:24)**  
**What does that mean?**

Lexa's not entirely sure how to explain that without saying that Clarke is special and if she tells Anya that she'll just jump to conclusions and interrogate her about it for hours, she might even drive to Arkadia to find out for herself.

**Lexa (11:27)**  
**She is just different.**

**Anya (11:27)**  
**Lexa don't be all secretive, you can tell me about her.**

_'No, I really can't.'_ Lexa says to herself.

**Lexa (11:28)**  
**I really don't know enough about her to tell you right now. All I do know is that she is kind, caring and funny, she's nothing like the last two roommates.**

Lexa receives a few more new messages but again she ignores them.

**Anya (11:29)**  
**Are you telling me that you and her are becoming friends?**

**Lexa (11:29)**  
**I'm telling you that my roommate is a nice person, I'm also telling you that this conversation is over because it's almost noon and I haven't eaten yet.**

**Anya (11:30)**  
**Fine, be like that but you know I will find out eventually and don't starve yourself, go eat.**

**Lexa (11:30)**  
**I'm not starving myself, I had a lot of messages to reply to thanks to you so I couldn't get anything to eat yet.**

**Anya (11:31)**  
**You know your phone is portable, right? You can use it while you're eating, technology truly is amazing.**

**Lexa  (11:31)**  
**Ugh, bye.**

**Anya (11:32)**  
**Bye little Lexi.**

Lexa spends a few more minutes reading the other messages she got while she was talking to Anya. They all say pretty much the same thing, that Anya needs to stop jumping to conclusions so quickly and that they are sorry for doing so too but they are happy to hear that her new roommate is great. Alie adds to her message that her offer still stands for Lexa to call her if she ever needs to talk. Lexa thinks about how lucky she is to have such a caring family. By the time she's finally done replying to everyone it's just past noon and she is starving.

She decides that she'll go for a run after breakfast so she throws on her black basketball shorts and a grey tanktop.

She makes her way to the kitchen. When she enters the kitchen she finds Clarke cooking their breakfast, Raven sitting on the countertop, Octavia is standing between her legs with her back to her, Raven has her head resting on top of Octavia's head, her eyes are closed so Lexa thinks she's either asleep or exhausted.

"Hey Lex." Octavia is the first to greet her. Her eyes focus back on her phone after she does.

As soon as Octavia says her name Raven's eyes snap open. "Morning Woods."

Clarke turns to face Lexa with a beautiful smile on her face. "Hey, did you sleep alright?"

Lexa gives Clarke a smile that is just as beautiful and nods.

"Good. Breakfast will be ready soon." She turns back around to the frying pan.

"Damn Woods, you make shorts and a tank top look so hot." The other two girls look at Lexa.

Lexa turned red from embarrassment and looked at the floor.

Clarke hadn't noticed Lexa's outfit the first time she looked at her. As she looked at her she had to bite her own lip at the sight of Lexa's strong arms and toned legs, a small bit of Lexa's stomach was showing where her tank top wasn't fully pulled down. Her tank top was just tight enough that Clarke didn't have to try too hard to imagine how toned her stomach was, she had her hair braided like she had the previous few days, Clarke agreed with Raven, she did look hot.

Raven grabbed Octavia's head and turned it towards Clarke. Octavia had to fight the urge to giggle seeing Clarke practically drooling as she checked out Lexa's body.

Raven pulled out her phone slyly. "I'm going to call this one lustful Clarke." She whispered in Octavia's ear as she showed her the picture of Clarke she had just taken. 

Octavia couldn't stop the laugh that came out of her after that.

Lexa and Clarke looked at her wondering what was after happening. They noticed Raven holding her phone in front of Octavia. "What's so funny?" Clarke asks Raven because Octavia is still laughing.

"Nothing, just another dog video."

Clarke accepts the explanation and gets back to cooking their breakfast.

Lexa gives Raven the same suspicious look she had given Octavia yesterday.

Octavia finally stops laughing and sees the way Lexa is looking at Raven so she tries to distract her. "Are you going working out today Lex?"

Lexa nods and points towards the door.

"Oh, you're going to a gym?" Octavia asks figuring that must be what she's saying.

Lexa shakes her head and tries to work out a way to tell her but before she can Clarke speaks up. "You're going for a run?"

Lexa nods, one of the many good things about Clarke understanding her is that she spends less time trying to think about odd ways of explaining things to the other two girls.

"Oh, that's fantastic." The three girls are confused by Octavia's enthusiastic reaction. "Do you want some company? You can say no if you want, I haven't done any exercise since I moved in here, these two never exercise and they're not great at motivating me to do any so I'm slowly becoming one of them."

"Hey!! I exercise....sometimes." Clarke looks at Lexa almost guiltily after she says it.

Lexa wants to tell her that she doesn't need to exercise, that she's perfect just the way she is but she doesn't know how.

Clarke seems to just know what Lexa wants to say. "Thanks Lex." She has a big beaming smile showing.

Lexa feels her heart flutter. Even when she doesn't know how to say what she wants Clarke knows what she's thinking.

Raven and Octavia have no idea what just happened between the two. "What are you thanking Lexa for?" Octavia asks.

"Lexa doesn't think I need to work out."

Raven holds back a smirk. "Is that right Woods?"

Lexa nods, a big smile on her face after hearing Clarke confirm that she did know exactly what she was thinking.

"Ok well if I'm going to be eating meals made by two of the best cooks in all of Arkadia then I need to start working out again, so would it be ok if I tag along Lex?"

Lexa nods, she liked spending time with these girls individually just as much as she liked being around all of them at the same time.

"Hey Griff do you want to be lazy with me while these two get all sweaty?"

"Sure, we'll steal Octavia's secret junk food stash while they're gone." Clarke grins cheekily.

"If there is even just one thing gone from it when I get back I'll murder you both."

"O, we're just trying to help you, if we steal all your food you won't get to eat it all and then you won't have to work out to make up for eating it. It's not like me and Griff want to eat all that chocolate."

"Don't touch my food." Octavia warns.

"No promises." Clarke states. "Ok ladies, your breakfast is ready."

Again Octavia and Raven narrowly avoid knocking the blonde down as they lunge towards their plates and head over to the couch. Clarke hands Lexa her plate and they join the others.

While they eat they discuss working out a plan for who cooks and when. In the end it's decided that Clarke and Lexa will take turns, Clarke cooked breakfast so Lexa will cook their dinner. Any time one of them doesn't feel like cooking they'll get take-out instead which Octavia and Raven agreed to pay for as payment for the many free meals they will get from Clarke and Lexa.

After breakfast Octavia and Raven try to slip away before they get stuck washing the dishes again only to be stopped by Lexa running to block the door again, crossing her arms over her chest, she gives them a stern look and they both turn around, gather the plates and disappear into the kitchen.

Clarke high fives Lexa for trapping the girls again.

 

* * *

 

The two girls return to their own apartment after completing their task. Octavia goes into her room to change into her workout clothes and find a better place to hide her stash before she leaves.

Raven has a quick nap on the couch. She was exhausted today because she stayed up most of the night trying to think of new ways she could drop hints to Lexa and Clarke.

 

* * *

 

Thirty minutes later they returned to the other apartment. Lexa is just inside the door tying the laces on her shoes, Clarke is in her bedroom. "Ready to go Lex?"

Lexa nods at Octavia.

"Ok." She turns to Raven. "You behave yourself while I'm gone, ok?"

"Me and Griff have spent time alone together before O, this isn't our first play date, I'll be my usual wonderful self as always."

Octavia glares at her.

Raven throws her hands up in surrender."Ok, ok, I'll be good, promise."

"You better be, I'll find out if you're not." Octavia whispers this to her but Lexa hears it, she is confused about why she would need to threaten Raven like this but she chooses not to question it.

"Just go already." Raven starts pushing both Octavia and Lexa out the door. As soon as she closes it she calls out to Clarke. "Where are you Griff? It's rude to leave your guests all alone."

Clarke enters the room. "I was just grabbing my phone. You were alone for like two seconds."

"Well those two seconds felt more like two years to me so I thought you had abandoned me." Raven pretends to wipe away a tear.

Clarke starts clapping her hands as loudly as she can. "What an amazing performance, Raven Reyes you are the next Meryl Streep."

Raven bows and they both start giggling. They move to the couch and sit on opposite ends facing each other. "Last night was really fun Griff, I don't know how but Lexa just made it more fun than usual, she really is a perfect addition to our group."

"Yeah she's great. You and her seem to be great friends now." Clarke doesn't hear the jealousy in her own voice but Raven notices it.

"Yeah, she just gets me, you know? She even likes that I call us the fierce four."

Clarke groans at the new name Raven has given them. "You know how lame it is to call us that, right?"

"Lexa doesn't think it's lame, our numbers are even now it's no longer two against one, Lexa's on my side so it's a draw and I can call us that whenever I want."

"Ugh how on earth did I end up living with someone that's just as nerdy as you?"

"She's not a nerd, she's a total badass."

"Is Raven Reyes defending someone's honour?" Clarke acts shocked. "I think you might _really_ like her." She tries to cover the worry she feels by plastering a fake smile on her face.

"Nah, she's super hot and all that but we're just good friends, she's not really my type." Raven sees Clarke relax after that.

"Oh really?" Clarke had a real smile on her face now.

"Yeah, it really is great having her as a friend though."

Clarke hums her agreement. "She is so amazing, she fits in so well with us, it's like we were missing this part and now we're whole, you know?"

"That was so corny Griff." Raven chuckles. "But you're right."

"She's the best roommate I've ever had."

"Wait, the only other roommates you....Hey!!!" Raven hits Clarke with a cushion. "I was a good roommate."

"I'm just kidding Raven, you were a great roommate."

"Damn right I was." Raven's facial expression turns serious. "She's good for you Clarke, she gets you in a whole different way than me and O do. You get her as well, It's good that you two have each other."

Clarke hums. "There's just something about her, you know? Well actually there are a lot of things about her that make her so...so incredible."

"Like what?"

"One thing is that she makes me feel safe, I don't know why but it feels like nothing in this world could hurt me as long as she is by my side."

"Lexa will never let you get hurt, she'll protect you if you need her to." Raven smiles thinking about Lexa's protective side showing yesterday. "Even though me and O are just across the hall we still feel better knowing you have someone here that will look after you."

"She's really special."

"I know we've only really known her for three days now but you seem happier since you two met."

Clarke thinks about it. "I am."

"That's really good Clarke, I'm happy for you."

Clarke hesitates for a moment before she speaks. "I was thinking about asking her to come to moms house with us for dinner on Saturday. I think mom would really like to meet her."

"That's a great idea Griff." She squeezes Clarke's shoulder lightly to reassure her. "It'll be great and having Lexa there means I won't spend hours nagging you and O to leave so I can get home to see her."

"Are you sure you have no feelings for Lexa?"

"I have feelings but they are purely platonic." Raven places a hand over her heart making a silent promise to Clarke that she doesn't have any interest in being in a relationship with Lexa.

"That's great." Clarke proclaims happily.

"Great?" Raven bites back a smirk.

"Um, I mean..." Clarke tries to think of a reasonable explanation.

Raven can see that Clarke is trying to cover her feelings so she speaks before she can. "Have you told mama Griff about her yet?"

Clarke instantly relaxes when the subject is changed. "I told her that she's a great roommate and friend."

"I think Lexa would like to know more about you so she'll probably want to go with us."

"I hope so." Clarke says as she gets off the couch. "Let's go see what we can steal from O's stash."

"Might take a while to find it, I'm pretty sure she moved it." Raven and Clarke make their way to the other apartment.

 

* * *

 

"Ok we're not too far away now, do you want to race for the rest of the way?" Octavia looks at Lexa waiting for her response.

Lexa looks over at Octavia. She's always been competitive, her and Lincoln used to run together back in Polis and they would always race each other. She thinks she could beat Octavia easily so she agrees.

"Ok, on three. One...two...three."

Lexa bolts forward immediately taking the lead. She runs a good distance before she looks back to see how far behind Octavia is. She was surprised to find that the other girl was actually quite close to catching up to her. She hates to lose so she forces herself to run as fast as she possibly can. She reaches the building a few minutes later.

Less than a minute after Octavia reaches the building. Lexa is standing with her back against the wall with one foot propped up on it. When Octavia gets closer to her she pulls her arm out in front of her and pretends to look at her imaginary watch.

"Oh stop it, I wasn't that far behind you." Octavia leans against the wall next to her taking a moment to catch her breath.

"Apart from how smug you are about winning that was fun, thanks for letting me come with you."

Lexa nods and gives Octavia a small smile in response.

"Would you be interested in making this a regular thing? I want a chance to beat you, it might take a while but I will someday."

Lexa nods again giving her a bigger smile this time. She's thankful Octavia joined her, over the past two years she had never run alone, Lincoln would always go with her. She thinks she wouldn't have enjoyed this run if she had gone alone and she's happy to have a new running partner.

"Great." Octavia thinks about something before she speaks again. "Now usually I would use this alone time to give you the best friend speech but you're my best friend now too and I know you're not going to hurt Clarke. Instead of doing that I want to thank you for what you've done for her and for being our friend but mainly the Clarke thing."

Lexa gives her a curious look. Octavia can see that she's confused by what she said.

"Clarke had a rough time a while ago and she just wasn't the same after that but then you showed up and she's back now, she's the Clarke I grew up with, it's like those bad memories can't hurt her when you're around." Lexa smiles hearing this, she never wants to let anything hurt Clarke and she's glad that she can help her even if she doesn't know how she is doing that.

"She's even happier now than she was before that shit happened to her. Me and Raven have really missed seeing her like that, I know her mom has missed it the most and you'll be her favourite person in the world when she finds out that you've done that. She's happy again because of you Lex, so thank you for being you."

At this point Lexa is fighting to hold back tears. She found it incredible that these girls liked her for who she is and now one of them is thanking her for that too, it means so much to her. Octavia notices this and puts her hand on Lexa's shoulder giving it a light squeeze. Lexa smiles softly when she finally managed to stop the tears from falling.

"I like spending time with you Lex. Before we interrupt Clake and Raven do you want to come hang in my apartment for a while? You can even have some chocolate from my stash."

Lexa happily nods at Octavia.

"Want to race up the stairs?"

She nods again ready to beat Octavia for a second time.

 

* * *

 

 _Meanwhile in Clarke's apartment._

 

Clarke and Raven had returned to the other apartment after failing to find Octavia's stash. Raven has been speaking about Lexa's car for quite a while, telling Clarke every detail there is to know about that type of car, Clarke already knows all of this being a fellow car nerd but when Raven talks about cars she's like a kid in a toy shop and Clarke loves seeing her so excited. Somehow everything that they spoke about in the last hour has included Lexa in some way, Clarke wouldn't complain about that though.

Raven stops speaking when she hears what sounds like people running in the hallway. Clarke and Raven both make their way to the door to find out what was going on, when they open it they see Lexa standing outside the other apartment with a smug look on her face.

"I will beat you someday Lexa, it's going to happen."

They look down the hallway and see Octavia walking towards them with her shoulders slumped in defeat.

Clarke makes her way over to Lexa's side and taps her on the shoulder lightly. Lexa turns to face her. "Hey." Clarke looks at her with a goofy grin.

Lexa gives Clarke a small wave and her own goofy smile. They stand there staring at each other again.

Raven realizes that she is too close to them to take a picture but if she moves she knows they'll notice and their moment will end.

Octavia sees the disappointment written all over Raven's face and it only takes a few seconds to understand why she looks like that. She pulls her own phone out and snaps a picture of the two with Raven beside them looking overjoyed as she looks directly at Octavia.

After spending a little more time enjoying watching the two of them Raven finally speaks up. "How was the run?"

"Good apart from Lexa beating me, twice." Octavia pouts.

"Damn Woods, you beat O in a race?"

Lexa nods and looks at Clarke as if she was waiting for approval from her.

"Good job." Clarke whispers to her.

Lexa smiles again.

"O's like a fricking tiger, how the hell did you beat her?"

Lexa shrugs. 

"O's a tiger but Lexa's a lion." All three girls look at Clarke after she says this.

Raven is the one that asks her to explain. "Huh?"

"Lion's are a little faster than tiger's but both are strong, powerful and amazing."

"Aww Clarkey you are too sweet." Octavia blows a kiss to Clarke.

Lexa looks at Clarke affectionately.

"What am I Griff?"

"You are a monkey. You're always making people laugh, you've got a cute face and you throw stuff when you're angry."

Raven crosses her arms over her chest and pretends that she is thinking about that answer. "Very accurate."

"What's Clarke then?" Octavia asks Raven.

"Hmm maybe a koala because of how clingy she gets when she's sleepy."

"Or a cat because she's grumpy when you wake her up.

"A dog because she's loyal and cute." Raven notices Lexa giving her a jealous look when she calls Clarke cute.

"Oh I got it she's a cute and cuddly panda." Lexa sends the same jealous look to Octavia, she quickly tries to distract her. "Lex, what do you think Clarke is?"

Lexa turns and faces Clarke again. She looks at her beautiful blue eyes and her blonde hair, she thinks for a moment before she flaps both her arms.

"A bird?" Clarke asks her.

Lexa nods. She pulls some of her own hair over her shoulder to show Clarke, then she points at her own eyes, then looks and points up to the ceiling.

"My hair and my eyes remind you of the sky?"

Lexa nods again. She inhales and exhales dramatically.

"And air?"

She holds her hand out flat and moves it from side to side slightly telling Clarke that she is almost right. She inhales a long breath of air and smiles after she exhales.

"I'm like a breath of fresh air?"

Lexa nods her head enthusiastically.

"Wow." Clarke almost whispers this as she stares deep into Lexa's eyes.

"Well fuck, Woods just put all of our suggestions to shame." Raven is now standing beside Octavia, they both watch the other two girls amazed by what they just heard.

After a moment of silence Clarke speaks again. "I think of nature when I look at you, I can see all the colours of a forest in your eyes, you are beautiful and I find everything about you fascinating." Clarke didn't think she would confess all of that. Her cheeks quickly turn a deep shade of red, she lowers her head to hide it.

Lexa stares at her with wide eyes. She is shocked that someone as wonderful as Clarke would say such beautiful things about her.

Octavia and Raven are on the verge of tears as they hold each other in a side embrace too happy to even try to pretend like that was not a big deal. "Take a picture, quick." Octavia whispers to Raven. She does as she had been told and smiles when she sees that the picture captures the moment perfectly.

 _'This is the perfect time to say something, speak to her.'_ Lexa thinks to herself. Her mouth opens slowly.

Octavia and Raven's eyes go wide as they notice this. Up until now they didn't know if Lexa could speak, they're still not sure but they know that she's trying to.

Clarke still hasn't looked up from her hands and is completely unaware of what Lexa is trying to do. "So...what's the plan for today?"

Lexa's mouth closes quickly when Clarke speaks.

Octavia and Raven are disappointed that Clarke stopped Lexa from speaking but they know it wasn't intentional and they knew that she would try again when she was ready. Lexa was trying and they were happy about that. "Well me and Lex planned on spending some more time hanging out on our own before we interrupted you two, I'd still like to do that if you would Lexa?"

Lexa tears her eyes away from Clarke to give Octavia a quick nod.

"Are you trying to steal my best friend from me, O?" Raven looks suspiciously at her.

"I don't have to steal her away, she's my best friend too, remember? You two already had some bonding time with Lex, I want that too."

"Ok, then you have my permission to hang out without me."

Clarke glances at Lexa while the other two spoke, she found green eyes looking at her and her cheeks started to heat up again. She looks away as quickly as she can focusing on her other two friends again. "You two have fun, we'll see you later." Clarke moved forward and grabbed Raven's arm pulling her into her and Lexa's apartment before she could say anything else.

Lexa is confused by what just happened and looks to Octavia for an explanation but she just shrugs and leads the way into her apartment.

As soon as Clarke closed the door she leaned back against it and closed her eyes, she was relieved that she couldn't say anything else to Lexa now.

"You ok Griff?"

"Yeah just um, tired I guess?" It comes out as a question.

"Me too. Want to go nap until O and Woods come back?"

Clarke doesn't answer she just starts walking towards her bedroom with Raven following behind her. They both drop down onto Clarke's bed and almost immediately fall asleep.

 

* * *

   
_A little while later in the other apartment_.

 

Lexa and Octavia had been slowly making their way through Octavia's entire stash, agreeing to run a little longer tomorrow to compensate for eating so much. Lexa got to see Octavia's victory dance when she discovered that the other two girls hadn't found her stash. They had some awful horror movie playing on the TV, they discovered that they both enjoyed watching terrible horror movies and that they both believed there was no such thing as a scary horror movie.

They were half way through the movie when Octavia decided to speak to Lexa about what happened in the hallway. She grabbed the remote and muted the TV.

Lexa looked over at Octavia wondering why she would do that.

"I want to tell you something but I don't want you to be worried when I do, will you promise me that you won't run away from us if I tell you?"

Lexa nods warily.

"Ok so in the hallway a while ago me and Raven noticed something..." Octavia trails off trying to think of a good way to say this. "We saw that you were trying to speak to Clarke."

Lexa looks like a deer caught in headlights, she hadn't thought about Octavia and Raven watching them in that moment.

"You don't have to worry I'm not telling you this because I'm trying to force you to speak I just wanted to let you know that we still like you Lex. Whether you speak or not we're still going to be your friends, that's not going to change. If you want to speak that's your choice and you shouldn't feel like you have to unless you want to." Octavia sees Lexa's expression change, she looks like she is relieved to hear all this.

"I do want to know something though." She waits for Lexa to nod before she continues. "Do you trust us?"

Lexa has spent a lot of time over the last couple of days thinking about this, she knows the answer, she just hasn't admitted it to herself yet. She feels sure of her answer now so she nods.

"Good, we trust you too." She smiles. "We're your friends now and that means if you have a problem or you just had an awful day we are here to support you if you need us, you can come to us to help when you're struggling and we'll do our best for you." She puts her hand on Lexa's knee and squeezes it lightly. "Even if you just need us to sit with you watching terrible horror movies, we can do that, ok?"

Lexa gives her a warm smile.

"And as for Clarke, me and Raven won't say a word to her about this and if you get caught up like that again and you don't feel ready to talk yet you can just give one of us a look and we'll distract Clarke but even if she does realize what you're trying to do she'll wait until you're ready, she won't push you, you know that right?"

Lexa has a wide smile forming before Octavia finishes speaking, she still nods when she's done though. Everyday these three girls just get more and more amazing. The fact that Raven and Octavia are willing to keep this secret from their best friend for her really proves that she can trust them. 

"Ok that's all the serious stuff done with, let's get back to watching this truly awful movie." She gives Lexa's knee another squeeze before she grabs the remote.

 

* * *

 

 _Two hours later._

 

"Clarkey? Raven?"

"Kitchen." They hear Raven yell back.

They make their way in there. "Hey, where's Clarke?" Octavia asks Raven who is slumped on the countertop with an almost empty cup of coffee in front of her. 

"She's still asleep, she told me to wake her up when you two got back but I can't move from this spot, I need to get as much caffeine into me as I possibly can." Raven jolts up when she thinks of something. "Hey Lexa would you go wake Clarke up?"

Lexa points at herself wondering if Raven really was asking her.

"Yeah you."

Lexa shakes her head vigorously and points at Octavia.

"No I need O to help me with something so she can't do it. Please Lexa you would be doing me a huge favour and I would be so grateful."

Lexa reluctantly nods before she turns and leaves the kitchen. She makes her way down to Clarke's room, she freezes in front of the door, unaware that the two girls are watching her from a distance, she takes a deep breath before she knocks on the door. When there is no response she knocks again a little harder this time hoping it will be enough to wake Clarke. 

No response again she's just going to knock again when she hears Raven shout from the kitchen where her and Octavia have hidden from view again. "You have to go in Woods, Griff's a heavy sleeper."

Lexa takes a shaky breath before finally opening the door. She enters the room and finds Clarke wrapped tightly in her blanket snoring softly, Lexa thinks it's the cutest snoring she's ever heard. 

She stops herself from taking a quick glance around the room, she thought it would be an invasion of the other girls privacy to do so while she was asleep.

She doesn't want to sit on the bed without permission so she moves to the side of the bed close to Clarke and kneels down. She places her hand on the other girls arm and gently shakes her. It doesn't wake the sleeping girl so she tries again a little harder this time.

"I'm still tired Raven, let me sleep." Clarke falls silent again for a moment. "Wake me up when Lexa comes home."

  
_'Home.'_ Lexa repeats the word a few times in her mind. A fond smile crosses her face. She shakes the girl one more time before she finally opens her eyes.

Clarke frowns as she opens her eyes thinking Raven is the one keeping her awake. As soon as her eyes adjust to the sunlight she spots Lexa, her frown is replaced with a soft smile. "Hey, you're home." 

Lexa's smile widens hearing Clarke say this, she nods and finally removes her hand from Clarke's arm.

"Why are you kneeling on the floor?"

Lexa motions to the bed then shakes her head and lays her head onto her hands pretending to sleep.

"Oh you didn't know if I would be ok with you sitting on my bed while I was asleep?"

Lexa nods.

"You are welcome in my bed anytime Lexa." She thinks about what she said for a second before correcting herself. "ON!!! On my bed, in my room...Oh." She realizes that this is the first time Lexa has been in her room. "Do you like my room?"

Lexa looks around the room slowly. She sees a small desk with a laptop and some books on it. Photo frames are scattered around the room, some have pictures of Clarke with Octavia and Raven in them, the others are of people Lexa doesnt know yet, she spots a few with two people who look to be older than anyone in the other photo's she assumes they are Clarke's parent's. 

By the window there is a small table with an easel next to it, the table is covered in various art supplies, a few canvases are stacked against the wall with their backs facing out so Lexa doesn't know if they are used or blank, there is a canvas on the easel that has been used, it appears to be a painting of a creek, Lexa wonders if the creek has some significance to Clarke or if it is simply an image she created in her mind.

Clarke sits up in her bed and watches Lexa as she studies the room, she notices how fixated Lexa's eyes are on the painting, she remembers how fascinated Lexa was by the sketch she had done on her note. "Do you like the painting?"

Lexa nods, her eyes remain fixated on the painting as she does.

"It's dry, you can touch it if you want."

Lexa looks at Clarke for confirmation that she means it, when Clarke gives her a small nod she stands up and walks over to it. She looks back at Clarke once more for reassurance before she slowly reaches forward. She moves her index finger along the surface of the water before she moves her hand to the top of the painting running two fingers over the leaves on the trees above it. She thinks she can almost feel the texture of leaves as she does.

Clarke watches in awe as Lexa examines every inche of the painting. From the look on Lexa's face she thinks that she is picturing herself standing at the creek.

The two are so engrossed in their own little world that they don't see their other two friends at the door. Raven takes another picture, Clarke watching Lexa with a clear look of admiration on her face and Lexa is angled just right so that her look of wonder and intrigue is clear in the photo.

When Lexa removes her hand from the painting she studies it for just a few more seconds before turning back to face Clarke. They lock eyes.

Raven snaps another photo of them, she knew there would be another photo to take soon enough so she didn't bother putting her phone away after the last one.

"Lexa, I..." Clarke can feel tears in her eyes. 

Lexa worries when she sees Clarke's watery eyes, she sits on the bed next to her and places one of her hands on Clarke's knee.

Clarke realizes that Lexa is worried about her. "Don't worry Lex, I'm not sad I'm happy, I feel happy because of you."

Lexa feels an unexpected surge of pride when Clarke tells her this.

Clarke puts her hand on top of the hand Lexa has on her knee. "Thank you."

Lexa searches her mind trying to figure out what she did that made Clarke happy.

"No one has ever looked at my art the way you do. My friends and family tell me they like it but the way you look at it and touch it makes me feel like my art is...special." Clarke looks away from Lexa feeling somewhat vulnerable.

Lexa opens her mouth to try to speak for the second time that day. She wants to tell Clarke that her art is special, that it makes her feel like she's really standing at the creek in the painting. She tries but no words come out.

  
_'Speak to her, this is important.'_ She says to herself. She tries again but no sound will come out of her.

  
_'Say something, anything.'_ She tells herself.

Octavia can see from her spot at the door that Lexa is struggling. "We need to help Lex." She whispers to Raven.

Raven nods before strolling into the room. "I see you managed to wake up sleeping beauty without losing any of your limbs, I'm impressed, Woods."

"Hey!! I'm not that difficult to wake up." Clarke protests.

Octavia followed Raven into the room and stood beside her. Lexa gave them both a thankful look, Raven winks at her and Octavia gives her a thumbs up.

"Bullshit, you're so grumpy when you wake up." Octavia adds.

"I'm not." Clarke whines, she looks at Lexa. "I'm really not that bad, these two just don't wake me up as gently as you do."

"We used to be gentle but you would just shout at us and then you started to get violent so we had to start being a bit rough to get you out of bed." Octavia explains.

"It's much easier to get you into bed than it is to get you out of it." Raven quickly realizes how that sounded. "Oh shit sorry Griff I didn't mean it like that, fuck."

Clarke chuckles at Ravens embarrassment before hitting her with a pillow. "You better not mean it, I am in no way easy Reyes."

Raven grabs the pillow and tries to hit Clarke but she manages to avoid it.

"No, we're not having a pillow fight." Octavia takes the pillow away from them. "Time to get out of bed Clarkey, coffees ready and we're all going to the park for a picnic later." Octavia announces.

"Really? We haven't done that in a long time." Clarke asks, excited about that plan.

"Yeah me and O thought it would be fun, do you want to do that Woods?"

Lexa nods, she hops off of the bed and offers her hand to Clarke to help her up too.

Clarke accepts her offered hand. Once she's off the bed neither one of them let's go of the others hand. They get lost in each other's eyes again. Raven pulls out her phone and takes another picture.

After another few seconds of hand holding and staring Octavia clears her throat startling both girls out of their trance, they both let go of their hands and look at their other two friends. "You two get caffeinated, me and Raven are going to go shopping and get everything we need, ok?"

Lexa stands up straight and salutes Octavia, Clarke copies her and then Raven does too. Octavia rolls her eyes at her three friends. "At ease soldiers."

They go their separate ways getting ready for their day together.

* * *

 _Later at the park._

They all sat on the large blanket they had spread out. Lexa lay down with her elbows proped up looking at the sky, Clarke sat facing Lexa drawing in her sketchbook, Octavia was lying down on her back with her hands tucked under her head listening to music and Raven was lying down using Octavia's stomach as a pillow looking out at the lake.

Raven raised her hand to poke Octavia in the side. "Will you come for a little walk with me O? I need to stretch my legs."

Octavia just nods and stands up after Raven does.

Raven mouths the words 'ask her' to Clarke before her and Octavia walk away.

Once they're gone Lexa looks over at Clarke.

Clarke knows Lexa's watching her and she smiles before she looks at her. "Want to see?"

Lexa sits up and moves closer to her. She was astonished by the drawing Clarke had done. It was like looking at a photo of herself. The detail was incredible. She held her hand out and looked at Clarke silently asking if she could take the sketchbook for a moment. She handed it to her and Lexa immediately started moving her index finger along the lines.

Clarke found herself watching Lexa move her finger around the drawing, wondering what she was thinking about while she did.

Octavia and Raven were stood at the lake not far from the two other girls. Octavia was using Raven as cover to hide her phone while she took a picture of the two. "We'll have three full scrapbooks by the end of the week if they keep being so cute."

"We? So you're going to help me make the scrapbook?"

"Yes, even though it is a super nerdy plan and only mom's in the eighties make scrapbooks I am totally on board with it."

Raven squeals and throws her arms up in the air in triumph. "Our scrapbook will put all those eighties mom's scrapbooks to shame."

Clarke and Lexa look at the other two when they hear Raven's squeal. Lexa looks at Clarke for an explanation but she just shrugs. "So do you like the drawing?"

Lexa smiles looking back down at the drawing, she looks over at Clarke and places a hand over her own heart.

Clarke stays silent for a while, working up the courage to ask her. "Lex, I was wondering, are you busy on Saturday?"

Lexa thinks for a moment, trying to remember what she was supposed to do on that day. When she remembers she nods, she sees that Clarke is clearly disappointed about her answer.

She wishes she didn't have to call her family on Saturday but she can't break promises. She briefly wonders if she could get them to change it to Sunday but she knows that if she tries they will want an explanation for it and she can't tell them about Clarke yet, she's not ready for all the questions they will ask her.

Clarke notices that Lexa looks like she's feeling terrible about it, she also sees that she is deep in thought. She places her hand on Lexa's shoulder to bring her back out of her thoughts. "It's ok Lexa, I was just asking to see if you wanted to come to dinner at my mom's house with me, O and Raven."

Lexa feels worse knowing Clarke wanted to introduce her to her mom.

Clarke realizes that she is even more upset now. "You can come with us another time, ok?"

Lexa relaxes a little knowing that this isn't the only time Clarke will ask her to come with them but she still feels a bit bad about it.

Octavia and Raven return from their walk. Raven raises her eyebrows silently asking Clarke if Lexa would be joining them. Clarke looks at Lexa before answering, she doesn't want her to see her respond to Raven because she thinks it might make her feel worse about it. She gives Raven a sad look, shakes her head and mouths the word 'busy'. Raven gives her an apologetic look before sitting back down on the blanket. Clarke shrugs in response. 

Octavia sits down next to Raven facing the other two. She notices straightaway that something's bothering Lexa, she nudges her knee with her foot getting her attention. "You ok?"

Lexa gives her a slow and weak nod.

Octavia looks to her other two friends for some sort of explanation. Clarke has a sad look on her face as she looks at Lexa. Raven shakes her head telling Octavia not to ask anything else.

"Emm, oh, there's a great ice cream parlour not too far from here, who wants ice cream?" She asks instead.

Clarke and Raven send a thankful look to her, Lexa seems to cheer up slightly at the mention of ice cream.

"Ok, let's pack up and head over there then."

* * *

 _Later that night._

They had spent the rest of that day driving around in Clarke's Nissan Versa. It was originally her mother's car but she had given it to Clarke when she started college and bought herself a smaller car. They decided that they would spend the rest of the day giving Lexa a tour of Arkadia.

Octavia chose to be the driver and Raven had sat in the passenger seat leaving the other two in the back seat. Lexa had been more interested in watching Clarke than she was in seeing Arkadia's landmarks. The same was true for Clarke, the two would occasionally catch each other staring and shyly look away.

They all enjoyed the tour, Raven had been acting as their tour guide, making up crazy stories about each landmark which made the tour far more interesting than it would have been if they were listening to real stories about them.

They had stopped for take-out on their way home after Raven's stomach made an angry grumble. They ate their food in Octavia and Raven's apartment while watching a few episodes of friends.

When Clarke found herself having difficulty keeping her eyes open she decided it was time for bed.

Her and Lexa made their way over to their own apartment.

Lexa was waiting for Clarke to say goodnight before going to her bedroom but instead Clarke held on to her wrist and pulled her towards the couch.

When they were both seated Clarke let go of her wrist. "I just want to make sure that you're not feeling terrible about not being able to come with us on Saturday. I knew there was a chance that you would be busy and that's ok, you don't have to feel guilty about being busy and it wasn't a one time offer Lex you can come with us any other time, ok?"

Lexa nodded. She hadn't realized that Clarke had picked up on how guilty she had been feeling about it but she realizes that she should have, it's Clarke after all and she understands Lexa better than anyone else in this world could.

"Good. When you do come with us you don't have to worry, my mom is just like me, O and Raven, she'll like you just as much as we do, she'll probably ask you to be her best friend too." Clarke chuckles.

Lexa smiles listening to her.

"Now that we cleared that up I think it's time for bed."

Lexa nods in agreement.

"Goodnight Lex." Clarke waits until Lexa gives her a small wave before getting off the couch and heading to her bedroom.

Lexa goes to her own room. When she finally climbs into her bed she thinks about everything that happened today. She tries to come up with some explanation for why she couldn't speak. She trusts these girls there should be no reason for her not to be able to speak now. 

She thinks about it for quite a while before she falls asleep but she can't come up with any explanation.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry this took so long, turns out that if you leave all your college work until the last minute you have to spend nearly two weeks working non-stop on it which is not so fun but it's done and I can write again, I hope you enjoy this chapter :)


	5. Family

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Family time  
> -dinner with Abby  
> -Skype with Woods Clan  
> -Lincoln being a good cousin

_Saturday afternoon._

 

Their day had started off as usual they all had breakfast together, Raven and Octavia tried to slip away again only to be silently ordered to turn back around and gather the dishes.

Lexa and Octavia left a while later for their daily run, Octavia still hadn't managed to beat Lexa yet. Clarke and Raven spent some time together while the two were gone.

The afternoon had come quicker than any of them thought it would. Octavia and Raven went over to the other apartment a few minutes before they had to go so they could see Lexa before they left, Raven had her phone in her hand ready for any cute moments she could capture.

The three girls haven't spent this much time away from Lexa since they first met her.

"Now that we won't be around some other people might come here wanting to steal you away from us to be their friend but you have got to resist them Woods, you have to fight to protect our friendship, ok?"

Lexa knew Raven was joking but she still nodded seriously at her.

Raven chuckles "Good to see you're taking this seriously."

"Alright, it's my turn." Octavia playfully shoves Raven away from Lexa. "We'll be back before you know it Lex, don't miss us too much and don't get into trouble while we're gone."

Lexa smiles in response.

"Wow O, you really do sound like a mom sometimes." Clarke nudges Octavia away from Lexa as she says it. "I hope what you have to do today goes well, we won't be gone for too long." Clarke looks away bashfully before continuing. "I'll...we'll miss you."

Lexa reaches out to hold Clarke's hand, she gives it a light squeeze.

Clarke looks at Lexa again and sees that she is telling her that she'll miss them too. This time instead of looking deeply into Lexa's eyes as she usually would her gaze focuses on their hands held together between them.

Lexa finds herself staring at them too, she can't quite understand how they fit so well together but she's happy that they do.

Raven raises her phone in her hand to take another photo.

"We better get going if we want to make it to Mama G's house on time." Octavia breaks their moment.

Clarke lets out a disappointed sigh and looks over at Octavia. "Yeah, you're right." She responds dejectedly, she looks back at Lexa. "We should go. Have a good day Lex."

Lexa gives Clarke's hand one last squeeze before reluctantly letting go.

The three girls walk towards the door and Lexa gives them a quick wave before they exit the apartment.

A few moments later Lexa drops herself down on the couch. She drapes an arm over her eyes to shield her eyes from the sunlight. Just after she does the door reopens. "Lex—" Octavia appears and looks concerned. "Are you alright?"

Lexa nods confused as to why Octavia came back.

"Ok, I forgot to tell you that the spare key to our apartment is on top of your fridge, if you need anything or if you just want to hang out there instead feel free to do so."

Lexa nods again.

"Bye Lex."

Lexa gives her a small wave before she exits again.

Octavia walks down the stairs and hops into Clarke's car that is right outside the door waiting for her.

"I feel so bad leaving Lex, she looked so lonely up there." Octavia gives Clarke a sad look.

Raven turns in her seat to address both of them. "It's only for a little while, we'll be back in no time and Lexa's busy anyways, I'm sure whatever she has to do will keep her mind occupied." She pauses to look at Clarke in the drivers seat and then Octavia in the backseat. "She won't even notice that we were gone." 

"I guess that makes it a little better." Clarke sighs. "I'm still not happy about leaving her."

"Jeez, I thought I'd be the one freaking out about leaving Woods."

"We're not freaking out we're just concerned." Octavia says defensively. 

"You know the sooner we get there the sooner we get to come back."

"Right, off we go." Clarke starts the car again.

* * *

  
_One hour later._

 

"Mom?"

"I'm in the kitchen."

The three girls make their way towards her.

"Hey girls." Abby greets them with a smile.

"Hey mom." Clarke hugs her.

"Hi Mama Griff." Raven throws her arms around the back of her.

"Hey Mama G." Octavia wraps around her side.

The three girls surround Abby holding her in the group hug for a few moments. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

  
_This was their usual greeting, it became a family tradition to do this whenever they were all together, Octavia and Raven are daughters to Abby just as much as Clarke is, at one point both girls had lived in this house but they were family long before either of them moved in._

_Octavia had been their next door neighbour since Clarke was four years old, after her father passed away her mother, Aurora, decided to move the three of them to Arkadia. The Griffin's and the Blake's became friends almost instantly, their families would have dinner together every weekend and then once the kids excused themselves Aurora, Jake and Abby would spend the rest of their day together sharing stories about things that happened during the week, their kids, their work. Bellamy was a little older than Clarke and Octavia but he would always spend his free time with them, he wasn't just Octavia's big brother but he was Clarke's too._

_When Aurora passed away Octavia was only sixteen, Bellamy had already moved away and started college in TonDC. They had no other relatives and their only option would have been for Bellamy to move back home, find a job and become Octavia's legal guardian. The Griffin's knew what they would want Aurora to do if they had passed away and Clarke was left alone and they didn't want Bellamy to have to do that so they sat down with Bellamy and Octavia a few days after the funeral to discuss them becoming Octavia's legal guardians and having her move in with them. It was the first time they had seen the two Blake's smile since they had found out that their mother passed away._

_Clarke and Octavia met Raven in elementary school, they were twelve and it had been their last year before they started middle school, the three of them became friends on her first day. Raven's mother had a problem with alcohol, over the years it had only gotten worse. Abby and Jake had tried to help Raven's mother when they found out about her drinking problem but she adamantly denied that it was a problem, the only thing they could do to help Raven was to take her for sleepovers with Clarke whenever her mother had her really bad days._

_When Raven was a sophomore in high school she was in a car accident in which her mother had been driving while intoxicated. They crashed into a building site, her mother had come out of it relatively unscathed but Raven had suffered a number of injuries. An iron rod had impaled her leg, she had suffered a spinal cord injury, a fractured arm and a few broken ribs. She was unconscious in the vehicle and when the paramedics arrived she was the only one in the car. It was only after Raven had woken up a day after the surgery that she had started asking about her mother. Jake and Abby sat down with Raven and told her that her mother had disappeared. The police had done an extensive search looking for her but she was gone._

_A few days after the accident a woman from social services came to speak to Raven in the hospital about placing her in a foster home. Clarke was the first to find out, when Raven told her in the hospital she assured her that it wouldn't happen before she excused herself from the room and called her parents. Jake and Abby wouldn't allow it to happen. They went to the hospital after Clarke called and asked Raven if she would be alright with them adopting her, she agreed but she wasn't sure they could do that so she didn't get her hopes up. They immediately started making calls starting the process._

_When Raven was discharged from the hospital, social services had allowed her to stay with the Griffins while they were working on the adoption process because Abby was a doctor and was in a position to help Raven. She had to use a wheelchair for a while because of her injuries but when she arrived to the Griffin household and saw the steps up to the front porch she was surprised to see a ramp in the middle of them, Jake had told her he built it himself for her._

_There were three bedrooms downstairs one was Clarke's, the others were guest bedrooms and there were another three upstairs one of which was Abby and Jake's, when they first saw this house they felt guilty for wanting it when there was only the three of them but they fell in love with it and all the other house's they saw paled in comparison so they ended up buying it. When Abby led Raven into one of the guest bedrooms she was surprised to find all of her things from her old bedroom were in there and the room almost looked identical to it. Abby told her that this was her home now and they wanted her to feel like it was so they set up everything just how it had been. Raven wanted it to be her home but she couldn't be sure that the adoption would work out._

_When Raven no longer needed a wheelchair she was told that she would always have to walk with either a cane or a crutch from then on. Everyone could tell just how upset Raven was about that even though she didn't show it. She had been walking with her crutch for nearly two months when Jake asked to speak to her privately, he took her out to the garage where he built everything and anything he could imagine. He sat her down and explained that he and a friend called Wick from work had been working on something to help her walk instead of the crutch. He pulled out a metal brace, he told her that Abby showed it to some of the doctors she worked with to get their opinion and that they had given the go ahead to try it. Raven examined the brace for a while before asking Jake to help her put it on, when he did she was delighted to see that it worked even better than he had expected. She had worn the brace ever since then, only using her crutch on the rare occasions when the brace would give her some trouble. After that Raven started spending time watching Jake work, he would explain everything he was making and how he would do it, soon she started working on her own projects alongside him, everything Raven knew about engineering she had learned from Jake. She thought that if she was torn away from this family and placed in foster care at least she would have learned something she is good at that could give her a bright future._

_One day when Octavia, Raven and Clarke returned from school they found Abby, Jake and Aurora hugging on the front porch, when they spotted the girls they gestured for them to come into the house. When they entered they found Bellamy on the couch looking just as confused as they were._

_"What's going on?" Clarke whispered to Bellamy when she sat down next to him._

_"Don't know, mom just told me to come over here and stay until you three came home. I thought we were in trouble or something, they've been acting really weird, they keep hugging and smiling." He explained._

_The three adults moved so they were standing in front of them with big smiles on their faces._

_"Will you please tell us what's going on?" Clarke pleads with her parents._

_"Ok, we've got some amazing news to share with you all." Jake announced before looking at his wife and friend resulting in even bigger smiles, he knelt down in front of Raven. "We found out today that the adoption was successful."_

_"Successful? So this is officially my home? You're my family?" Raven asked, looking stunned._

_"Yeah kiddo." Jake smiles at her._

_"This is your home, we are your family and always will be." Abby adds._

_This is the first time any of the Blake's or Griffin's see Raven cry, she hadn't cried after waking up in the hospital, or when she found out her mom had abandoned her, she didn't cry when she found out about her leg but she cried tears of joy hearing she was officially Abby and Jake's daughter. Raven stood up to hug them both and when she did everyone else joined the hug creating a massive group hug._

_Their group hug had gotten smaller over time but Abby felt the same amount of love in it that she did that first day it started._

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

When they finally broke apart the three girls sat at the kitchen table while Abby stirred the contents of the pot on the stove.

"How are you Mama G?"

"I'm great O, how are you girls?"

"We're great too."

"What have you been up to this week?"

"Hanging out with Lexa." Clarke responded cheerfully.

'Your new roommate?"

Clarke hums in response, a content smile on her face as her mind wanders to thoughts of Lexa.

"Things are going well between you two then?"

"Yup." Clarke pops the 'p'.

"She's in our group now." Octavia informs her.

"Oh, so does that mean you're no longer the troublesome three?"

"Yup, now we're the fierce four." Raven proudly states.

Octavia and Clarke groan loudly.

"Oh hush you two, I like it Raven."

"Thanks Mama Griff." Raven turns back to face her two friends. "That's three against two now losers."

"Tell me about Lexa, what's she like?"

"She's a cool hot badass with an awesome car and she cooks just as good as you and Griff."

"What do you think of her O?"

"She's great."

"Clarke?"

"Hmm Lexa is perfect." Clarke says dreamily.

Abby gives Octavia and Raven a questioning look.

The two share a look and smirk looking at Clarke who looks like she has zoned out, Abby knows then that there's something going on.

She has a mischievous glint in her eyes which confuses the two girls. She makes her way over to the fridge and pulls out a carton of milk she moves back over to the sink and pours out the contents of the carton watching Clarke while she does to make sure she doesn't notice what she's doing. She turns back to the girls and nods.

"Clarke?...honey?" 

Octavia nudges Clarke bringing her out of her thoughts.

"Sorry, what?" Clarke tries to focus again.

"I'm out of milk, could you go get some more for me?"

"Sure, I'll be back in a few minutes."

"Take your time."

Clarke grabs her car keys and leaves the house. 

Abby waits until she hears her drive away before she speaks. "Ok girls, Clarke won't be gone for long so tell me everything quickly."

"Clarke's really happy, Lexa's an amazing person, they like each other but they don't know it yet, they've got a special bond, Clarke understands everything Lexa says even though she doesn't speak, Lexa's our new best friend, she's very protective, she feels Clarke's art, you'll love her." Octavia hurriedly tells her.

"Feels her art?"

"Yeah when she sees something Clarke has drawn or painted she reaches out and touches it like she needs to feel it to believe it's real."

"Anything else?"

"We're making a scrapbook." Raven states proudly.

"Ok...?"

"We've got loads of pictures of Griff and Woods being cute together, since we can't just tell them they're falling in love we're going to put the pictures in a scrapbook for them and use it when they eventually get together to prove that we knew that they were falling in love from the moment they met."

"Can I see some of the pictures?"

Raven stands up and walks over to Abby and starts showing her the pictures she had of the two. "Ah see that one was a painting in Griff's room see the way Woods is looking at it and touching it?"

"I get it now. I bet it made Clarke feel great seeing her react like that."

"She cried." Raven swipes to the next picture of the two of them on Clarke's bed. "Woods was worried but Griff told her she was crying because she was happy."

"She's taking good care of Clarke?"

"Definitely, you'll notice the change in Clarkey during dinner." Octavia tells her.

"She's very pretty, they would make a beautiful couple." Abby smiles fondly looking at the picture from earlier that day that Raven had pulled up on screen of the two looking at their joined hands.

"Yeah, waiting for them to figure out how grossly adorable they are together is killing us." Octavia says as she moves to stand next to them to see the picture.

"Well if there's anything I can do to help speed things up just let me know."

"Wait...you're going to help us?" Octavia looks at her curiously.

"Of course, I want them to figure it out just as much as you do, I might not know Lexa but I can see that she makes Clarke happy and she deserves to be happy."

"That's awesome." Raven exclaims.

"Oh, I do have one request though."

"Ok, what is it?" Octavia now looks at her suspiciously.

"I want a copy of their scrapbook."

"We can manage that." Raven grins.

They continue to show Abby pictures telling her every detail they can remember about what had been happening when they took each picture. Abby didn't have to wonder why Clarke would like Lexa so much, hearing about everything she has done and seeing how much happier her girls are she knows that this girl will be a big part of their lives, hopefully for a very long time.

 

* * *

 

_Meanwhile back at the apartment._

 

Anya texted Lexa to tell her to call her on Skype, Anya and Lincoln both had the day off and decided they would talk to Lexa with Indra and Gustus so that Lexa wouldn't have to call them individually. After greeting each other Lexa carried her laptop around the apartment giving them a quick tour.

" _It's much nicer than your old apartment_." Indra pointed out when Lexa was finally finished the tour.

"Yeah, I like it."

" _Do you like it just because it's nice or is there another reason?_ " Anya asks in an accusatory tone.

" _What other reason?_ " Gustus asks Anya rather than Lexa.

" _Her roommate is 'different', isn't that right little Lexi?_ " Lexa rolls her eyes when she sees Anya put air quotes around the word.

"She's a nice person, that's what's so different about her, the complete opposite of you Anya."

Anya gasps and places a hand over her heart feigning hurt. " _Rude._ "

"True." Lexa counters.

" _Linc you're the deciding vote, was it rude or true?_ "

" _I'm with Lex, you can be too nosy sometimes Anya and it is rude to be so nosy, if she wants to tell us about her new roommate she can but you shouldn't force her to tell you._ " Lincoln explains.

Lexa smiles and nods at Lincoln, he was always the person she could talk to when something was going on in her life and he would never judge her or comment on whatever it was, he would simply allow her to talk through what was going on and only give an opinion if she asked for one.

He nods at her too knowing she's thanking him.

" _Betrayed by my own brother._ " Anya glares at him.

" _Is she kind to you Lexa?_ " Indra asks, concern lacing her words.

It was unusual for her aunt to verbalize her concern, she always knew it was there beneath her stoic façade but hearing it made it sound as though it was important for her to know so she wanted to answer honestly. "She is, Indra. she's sweet and she has a good heart, I know she would never try to hurt me."

" _You like this girl then?_ " Indra asks with less concern in her voice now, this time Lexa could hear hope in her voice.

"Yes, she's a great roommate."

" _Is that all she is? Just your roommate?_ " Anya smirks.

" _Leave your cousin alone Anya._ " Gustus scolds her.

"Thanks Gus."

" _You're all so boring._ " Anya pouts.

They continue to speak for an hour, they each take turns talking about everything that has happened during their week. Lexa notices Indra is more relaxed and open than usual, she wonders what has changed.

 

* * *

 

_Back at the house._

 

The girls have spent the last hour telling Abby absolutely everything they know about Lexa, even though she hasn't met her yet she feels like she already knows her and she likes what she has heard about her. 

"When do I get to meet her?"

"She was really upset about not being able to come with us today but I told her she could join us anytime so she does want to come here, I just dont know when she'll be able to."

"Oh that reminds me, I made an extra meal for you to take back with you for Lexa."

"Thanks mom, I'm sure she'll love it."

"Have you cooked for her yet?"

"Yup."

"Woods loves Griffs cooking and vice versa."

"Clarkey and Lex are going to cook all our meals for us." Octavia informs her.

"Oh yeah?"

"Yup, you have got to get Woods to cook for you sometime Mama Griff, she's insanely good."

"Sounds like you found the greatest roommate ever Clarke, hold on to that one."

"Oh I will, I want to keep her around for as long as possible."

 

* * *

 

Lexa calls the Jaha's next. She tests the waters with them telling them a few things she hadn't told her family about Clarke, she was happy that just like Lincoln they didn't push her to tell them more.

When she finishes her call with them she has some more time before her friends get back so she decides to call Lincoln. She texts him first so that she can ask to speak to him without Anya trying to listen.

**Lexa (17:15)  
Hey Linc, can I talk to you privately? **

It didn't take long to get a response.

**Linc (17:16)  
Of course, just let me make up an excuse and then I'll call you.**

It wasn't long before her phone rang, she answered immediately, she really needed to have this talk with her cousin.

" _Hey Lex._ "

"Hi Linc, what excuse did you use?"

" _I said a client from work needed advice._ "

"Good one, Anya won't bother listening if she thinks it's a work thing."

" _Exactly what I thought, has she been hassling you a lot?_ "

"A little, I told her Clarke is different and she's kind of obsessed with finding out why."

" _I'm sorry Lex, I'll try to stop her if I can._ "

"Its not your fault Linc, your sister is just far too nosy."

" _I think that's one of the reasons people immediately know that we're not related by blood, we're complete opposites._ "

"That's a good thing, if you were just like Anya I'd go insane."

" _Well don't worry your sanity will remain intact, I don't ever plan on becoming Anya's clone and I'll do my best to protect you from her._ "

"Thanks Linc, I'll need it this time, I don't think Anya's going to stop until she gets answers and I'm pretty sure she would even go as far as driving here to meet Clarke in person."

" _You don't have to tell her about Clarke unless you want to._ "

"Actually I was hoping I could talk to you about Clarke."

" _You can tell me anything you want to._ "

"I'm not really sure where to start to be honest."

" _Start with the small things and work your way up to the big stuff._ "

"Yeah, ok, that could be easier."

Lexa told Lincoln everything that had happened since she first stood outside her apartment door the day she moved in, she didn't have a problem telling him everything, she knew that he would never tell anyone what she told him and that he would do his best to give her good advice when she needed it.

" _She sounds great Lex, they all do, I'm happy you found them._ "

"Me too. I never would have thought after everything that happened that I could find strangers that would be good people and now I have three of them in my life, I just wish I could talk to them."

" _It's great that you're trying to speak to them Lex but don't beat yourself up about it, if it's meant to happen it will, you need to do this at your own pace and Octavia said they would support you no matter what you do so don't force yourself to talk before you are ready to._ "

"Thanks Linc, I can always count on you to give me great advice."

" _No problem Lex._ "

They continued to talk afterwards, Lexa wanted to hear all about what was going on in Lincoln's life.

 

* * *

 

_Back at the house._

 

They had finished their meals and sat chatting for a while.

"Who's helping me with the dishes?"

"I'm so full, can't move."

"Me too."

"Clarke you're a weakling, Raven you're lying, you're just lazy." Octavia smirks at her two friends. "I'll help Mama G."

"Thanks O." She starts gathering the dishes. "You two go relax on the couch."

They brought the dishes into the kitchen.

"I've got an idea O but I'll need your help."

"I'm listening."

"If I give you a letter will you give it to Lexa when Clarke's not looking."

"That could be difficult, Clarke's always looking at Lexa but I'll try, should I tell her to dump it after she reads it so Clarke doesn't see it?"

"No, it's ok for Clarke to see it but not until after Lexa reads it."

"Ok Mama G, you can count on me."

Octavia starts putting the dishes into the dishwasher while Abby grabs a sheet of paper and starts writing the letter. When she is done and has given the letter to Octavia they join the other two on the couch. They spend a few more minutes with Abby before they decide they should head back to their apartment. Before they leave Abby goes into the kitchen to get the meal she had prepared for Lexa. While they wait for her to return Clarke seems to think of something and runs out of view leaving Octavia and Raven alone together.

"I need you to distract Clarke when we get back."

"Why?"

"Mama G gave me a letter for Lex, she doesn't want Clarke to see it before Lexa does."

Raven spots Clarke approaching them again before she can answer so she just nods in response.

"What you got there Griff?"

"Umm....just a painting I thought Lexa might like."

Octavia and Raven examine the painting, it doesn't take long for them to understand why Clarke would want to give Lexa this painting, it's a forest from a distance with a clear bright sky above it, they both remember the conversation in the hallway a few days ago.

"She'll love it Clarkey."

Abby comes back to them holding the plate wrapped in cellophane. She notices the painting her daughter has, she instantly recognizes it as one of Clarke's favourites, the image is from a forest not far from the house that Clarke would go to whenever she needed to clear her mind, she had painted it many times but this was her favourite one because of the amount of detail she managed to include in it.

"I see Lexa's getting something from mama and baby Griffin today."

"How did you know it's for Lexa?"

"Just guessed."

Abby hands Octavia the plate and they make their way to the car. They say their goodbyes there, Abby tells them about the wedding she is attending the next day and the girls tell her to enjoy it before getting into the car and heading back home.

 

* * *

 

Lexa made the mistake of mentioning to Lincoln on the phone that she hadn't been using the weights he gave her since moving into the new apartment, he was happy to hear she had a new running partner but he is disappointed that she hasn't been keeping up with the workout plans he made for her, mainly because he wants Lexa to be strong since he's not there to protect her. Lexa knows that he's just worried and she feels guilty for making him feel that way so she promises to start that day and she follows through on her promise after their call ends.

When the three girls walk into Clarke's apartment Octavia and Raven sit on the couch while Clarke looks for Lexa, they had seen that her car was in the parking lot when they got back so they knew she was home. She finds Lexa in the kitchen drinking water with a light sheen of sweat coating her body..

Clarke drops the canvas she was holding when she sees her.

When Lexa hears the sound of the canvas hitting the ground she jumps slightly not realising the girls were back. She rushes forward to pick it up. 

Clarke stands frozen in place just watching as she approaches her. Lexa bends down and picks up the canvas, she flips it over and becomes enchanted by the image, a wide smile spreads across her face.

"Do you like it?"

Lexa nods without taking her eyes off of the painting.

"I thought you might." Clarke beams. "I brought it back for you."

Lexa points at herself as if she couldn't believe Clarke was saying that it was for her.

"Yes, for you Lex." Clarke wonders how it is possible for someone to be hot and cute at the same time.

Lexa places her hand flat down on the painting looking at it like it is her most prized possession.

Clarke feels a flutter in her heart watching her.

Octavia walks in a moment later. "Hey Lex, we missed you."

Lexa looks away from the painting to smile at Octavia.

"Are you hungry?"

Lexa nods.

"Oh yeah, mom sent back a meal for you." Clarke points towards the plate Octavia is holding.

Lexa grinned, from this small kind gesture she could tell that Abby was just as nice as the other three girls are.

"I can heat it while you're in the shower." Octavia says after noticing the sweat covering the girl.

Lexa nods once before she walks past the two girls, as she passes them she brushes her hand against Clarke's arm lightly, Clarke shivers slightly and Lexa assumes that her hands were cold.

Clarke isn't sure why but she thinks that Lexa did that to confirm that she really had come back.

When Lexa walks out of the kitchen she sees Raven on the couch, at the exact same moment Raven sees her too, she spots the canvas Lexa is carrying. "Hey Woods, you like the painting?"

She nods at Raven and places her hand on the surface of the canvas again.

Octavia and Clarke watch her from the kitchen, Clarke's heart flutters again. 

Octavia nudges Clarke. "I told you she'd love it."

"Yeah, I'm glad she likes it." Clarke doesn't look away from Lexa when she responds.

"Oh she doesn't just like it, she's looking at it like it's a lifetime pass to Disneyland."

"You think she likes it that much?"

"Let me put it this way, if your apartment was on fire the one thing Lexa would save would be that painting."

"That's a bit over dramatic O, she wouldn't do that."

"Actually you're right, she'd save you first, then she would probably run back in to save the painting but if she couldn't it would be ok because she would still have you and you could paint her hundreds of pretty paintings, Lexa would hang them up all over your new apartment and she would spend all her time admiring them." Octavia grins. "Is it weird that I kind of want to burn down your apartment now so that you will paint hundreds of pretty paintings for Lexa and we can watch her look so amazed all the time?"

"Yes it's very weird now hand over that plate, you are banned from going near anything that could start a fire." Clarke pulls the plate out of Octavia's hands.

"Hey!! I was just kidding, I'm not really going to set fire to your apartment."

 

* * *

 

A few minutes later Lexa came back into the kitchen and Clarke handed her the plate, she motioned for Lexa to follow her over to the couch where the other two were fighting over what they wanted to watch. Clarke separated the two and told Lexa she could pick what they would watch. It came as a shock to the three girls when they saw the title sequence for Tarzan on the TV screen.

"Lexa badass Woods is a Disney nerd?"

Lexa blushed.

"Hey, don't be embarrassed about it, that's a good thing, we're all Disney lovers." Octavia tells her.

"You chose well, Tarzan is one of my favourites." Clarke says with a big goofy smile on her face.

Lexa grinned, she picked up her plate from the coffee table and began eating. She realized that Clarke must have learned all her cooking skills from her mother because this meal was just as delicious as all of Clarke's were.

"Do you like it?" Clarke whispered trying not to distract the other two but she didn't know that they were trying to hear her.

Lexa gave Clarke a soft smile and nodded.

"Good, mom will be happy to hear that, she's really excited about meeting you."

At that moment Octavia remembers the mission Abby gave her and scolds herself for forgetting.

 

* * *

 

Once the movie ends Octavia sends a pleading look towards Raven who understands that she needs to distract Clarke.

"Griff will you help me with something?" She subtly points to her brace.

Clarke nods knowing she probably needs help loosening it or it's hurting her. 

Raven rises from her chair and gestures for Clarke to follow her. They walk out the door heading for the other apartment.

When Octavia hears the other door shut she pulls the letter out of her pocket.

"Lex?"

Lexa looks at Octavia waiting for her to continue.

"Mama G wanted me to give this to you." She holds the letter out for Lexa to take.

Lexa takes it hesitantly, she begins to worry about what's in the envelope, she knows it's a letter but it's what's in the letter that worries her.

She pulls it open slowly looking to Octavia who nods at her before she pulls out the letter.

_Lexa,_  
_I would really like to meet you some time but only when you're ready to meet me. Clarke has told me so much about you, I feel like I already know you, O and Raven have told me some things too but it was mainly Clarke that spoke about you, she's a big fan of yours, they all are and even though I haven't met you yet I already know I will love you as much as I love the other three. I just wanted to let you know that if you ever want to come by for dinner you are always welcome in my home, until you do I'm going to keep sending meals for you back with Clarke every Sunday, I really hope you like them._

_Take care,_  
_Abby_

Octavia watches Lexa reading the letter, she watches as a small smile grows into a big grin by the time Lexa finishes reading it.

Lexa reads the letter again but this time she furrows her brow.

"What's up Lex?"

Lexa hands the letter to Octavia, she reads the letter but doesn't understand what's confusing her.

"What part is confusing you?

Lexa points to the word 'Sunday' written in the letter.

Clarke and Raven come back into the apartment just as Octavia figures out what's going on.

"Oh my god, I completely forgot about that."

"Forgot what?"

"We usually have dinner at Mama G's on Sunday, we switched the days because of the wedding."

"How did we forget that?" Clarke realizes straightaway why Octavia is so surprised.

"Because we're idiots."

"Not me, I'm a genius." Raven grins.

"You didn't remember either, genius." Clarke smirks when Raven frowns.

"What's the big deal about it anyways?"

"Now Lexa might be able to come with us." Octavia cheerfully tells her.

Clarke sits on the coffee table in front of Lexa and takes both of her hands in her own. "Would you like to come with us next Sunday?"

Lexa nods without hesitation, the letter from Abby had made her feel even more excited about meeting her.

"Great I'll call mom and tell her the good news."

Clarke pulls out her phone and walks to her bedroom.

After Clarke had joined them again Octavia and Raven got a group text from Abby.

**Abby (19:52)**  
**Operation #GetClexaTogether is going well so far, Mama Griffin will officially meet baby Griffin's lady love next weekend.**

**Octavia (19:53)  
Operation #GetClexaTogether?? What's Clexa?? Since when do you use hashtags??**

**Abby (19:54)  
That's the name of our mission, Clexa like Brangelina and I forgot to tell you I joined Twitter, I really like using them.**

Both girls immediately go to their Twitter accounts after reading that message and start searching for 'Abby Griffin', it doesn't take long to find her, they both clicked on the follow button before going back to the text.

**Raven (19:56)**  
**'baby Griffin's lady love' LMAO!!! you're my favourite person in the whole world Mama Griff.**

**Octavia (19:56)  
Mine too.**

**Raven (19:57)**  
**O we should be ashamed of ourselves for not thinking of Clexa, Mama Griff you're smarter than the two of us combined.**

**Abby (19:58)  
So I'm smarter than a genius?**

**Raven (19:58)**  
**Yup, I bow down to your superior mind.**

**Abby (19:59)  
Good to know and now I'll always have proof that you said that.**

**Raven (20:00)**  
**What have I done?!**

**Octavia (20:01)  
You're screwed Reyes, she'll use that against you every time you get big headed, Mama G you excited to meet Lex next week?**

**Abby (20:02)  
I can't wait, I can show her Clarke's baby pictures.**

**Raven (20:02)  
YES!!!!! PLEASE DO THAT!!!!!**

**Octavia (20:03)**  
**Clarke will freak out.**

**Raven (20:04)**  
**You and I will distract Griff.**

**Abby (20:05)  
It's a good plan O.**

**Octavia (20:05)**  
**Fine, you can show her the baby pictures.**

"YES!!!" Raven shouts as she jumps up from her chair.

"What the hell Raven?!" Clarke yells.

"Sorry."

"You nearly gave me a heart attack."

"I didn't mean to, I'm sorry."

"Why did you do that?"

"No reason."

"Hold on," Clarke looks at Octavia and Raven suspiciously. "Were you two texting each other?"

"What? No. Why would you think that?"

"You two have been staring at your phones for like fifteen minutes, smiling at the same time and now you both look guilty."

"Clarke, we're in the same room why would we be texting?" Octavia asks defensively. 

"I don't know, you tell me?"

"We're not texting each other." Raven almost yells.

"Fine. Whatever, just don't scare me like that again."

They go back to watching TV. Octavia places her phone on the couch next to her leg and subtly texts Abby.

**Octavia (20:11)  
We can't text right now, Clarke's suspicious, talk again later.  
**

 

* * *

 

A while later Clarke wakes up, the room is dark, the only light source is the TV, it takes a moment for her eyes to adjust to it. She doesn't know what time it is or how long she had been asleep for. She decides to get up and go to bed before she falls asleep again. She tries to move but stops when she realizes that she can't because someone is holding onto her, she looks down at her shoulder and sees familiar braids. Lexa's head is resting on Clarke's shoulder and her arms are wrapped around her waist. Clarke blushes when she realizes that both her and Lexa had fallen asleep on the couch and at some point started cuddling. She looks around quickly hoping Octavia and Raven weren't there to see this, she was relieved to see that they were gone, she guessed they must've gone back to their own apartment, she really hoped that the cuddling hadn't started before they left.

_(What she didn't know was that Octavia and Raven had been there when the two girls fell asleep. Raven gently lifted Clarke's arm and put it over Lexa's shoulder so that she could send Abby a picture of them._

_Just as she pulled out her phone Lexa began moving, they both watched as Lexa curled into Clarke, one of her arms moved behind Clarke's back while the other moved in front of her until she linked her hands together so that she was hugging Clarke from the side. She rested her head against her shoulder and soon Clarke's head rested on the top of hers and her hand moved from Lexa's shoulder down to her hip._

_Octavia and Raven both stared wide eyed at the two cuddled up together, they fist bumped before they both started taking pictures of them, sending all of them to Abby.)_

She knows she shouldn't do it but for some reason she can't control her own body and all she can do is watch as her hand comes up to stroke Lexa's hair. After a moment she manages to regain control of her hand and places it gently on Lexa's back.

Lexa shifts in her sleep, her arms tighten around Clarke's waist and her head tilts upward a little resulting in her lips just slightly touching Clarke's neck. It's an innocent touch, Lexa hasn't purposefully placed her lips against her neck but Clarke's heart starts beating faster. She takes deep breaths trying to calm it down, it works but it also causes Lexa to stir in her sleep and Clarke knows she is about to wake up. She panics and ends up pretending she is still asleep.

Lexa wakes up and quickly moves away from Clarke when she notices the position they were in.

Clarke keeps her eyes closed, she's not sure how to feel about Lexa pulling away from her so quickly. Even though she can't see her Clarke knows that Lexa is staring at her.

Lexa _is_ staring at Clarke, she silently chastises herself for cuddling up to Clarke while they slept, she knows she didn't really have any control of the situation but she's still angry at herself for it. As she watches Clarke she wonders what she dreams about, does her past haunt her at night like her own does? She hopes not, Clarke doesn't deserve bad dreams.

Before she can really think about what's she's doing she reaches for Clarke's hand, the one that had previously been on her back but was now flat on the couch. She uses her index finger to draw random patterns on the back of her hand for a moment before she lays her own hand flat on top of Clarke's and slips her fingers into the spaces between hers. She opens her mouth hoping that she might be able to speak now that Clarke's asleep but no words comes out. She shakes her head, she feels angry at herself for not being able to speak to her but then she remembers what Lincoln had said about how if it was meant to happen it would, she thinks that maybe it's not happening because she knows that this isn't the right time for it to. She removes her hand from Clarke's and looks at her once more before getting off the couch and heading to her bedroom.

Clarke's heart had nearly leapt out of her chest when she felt Lexa's finger touch the back of her hand, she tried to concentrate on the patterns Lexa was drawing but she couldn't discern what any of them were. Then she felt Lexa's hand pressed flat against her own, the disappointment she had felt when Lexa woke up and pulled away from her disappeared as soon as Lexa placed her fingers between her own. 

She wasn't sure what to do when she heard Lexa walk away, she decided to wait a few minutes before opening her eyes, she was glad she did when she heard footsteps again. She felt something being draped over her and realized that Lexa had gone to her room to get a blanket for her. Every night she would say goodnight to Lexa before going to bed and she didn't want to skip doing that but she wasn't sure how Lexa would react if she found out that she had been awake, she decided to risk saying it. "Goodnight Lex." She mumbles, she was relieved that she somehow made it sound like she was speaking those words in her sleep.

Lexa placed her hand on Clarkes cheek and caressed it with her thumb. She looked at Clarke again for a moment before going back to her bedroom.

Clarke finally opened her eyes, she looked down at the blanket and smiled, it was a old marvel blanket that had seen better days, she guessed that it was one of Lexa's favourites because of how worn it was, she folded it up and placed it on the couch. She spent some more time on the couch thinking about everything that had just happened before going back to her own room.


	6. first week

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> -first week in college  
> -finn  
> -Abby meeting Lexa

The next day was spent preparing for their first week of classes. As they sat on the couch eating breakfast Clarke mentions that they should clear off the kitchen table (which had half of the kitchen supplies on it) and eat breakfast together every morning before class instead of sitting in front of the TV so that they can spend some time hanging out since they won't have much time together during the week because of coursework and classes. They all looked at each others schedules to see which of them could meet up for lunch or just to hang out between classes, there was only one day when they would all be able to have lunch together but there were a couple of days where at least two of them would be able to spend time together.

Their first week had gone well so far, they had managed to keep up with their agreement to eat breakfast together every morning, even on Wednesday when Octavia and Raven didn't have any classes until the afternoon they still dragged themselves out of bed just to have breakfast with the other two girls. Raven and Lexa had free time between their classes on Tuesday and they spent that time together, they had lunch at a nearby park and Raven taught Lexa how to take off her brace which had surprised Octavia and Clarke because Raven never really liked drawing attention to her injured leg.

 

_~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~_

_"Wanna show them what we learned today?"_

_Lexa nods and sits on the coffee table, Raven lifts her leg and rests it on Lexa's lap. Lexa looks at Raven for confirmation that she is happy to let her to do this and when Raven nods she gets to work following the instructions Raven had given her earlier in the day. She hears a small gasp from the two other girls when she starts but remains focused on her task. She takes off her brace and then puts it back on when Raven asks her to._

_"Good job Woods." Raven removes her leg from her lap, sits up and holds her fist out to Lexa for a fist bump, Lexa happily bumps her own fist against it._

_"This is major Rae, you never let anyone touch your brace other than me, Clarke, Bellamy and Mama G."_

_"Yeah, well, I trust Lexa." Raven says quietly, she fixes her gaze on the floor, feeling vulnerable._

_Lexa places her hand on Raven's knee so that the girl will look at her, when she does Lexa holds eye contact with her for a while before nodding trying to show her that she appreciates her trusting her._

_Raven's eyes started to sting with tears, she always worries about trusting people but that one simple gesture from Lexa made her believe that she made the right choice._

_"Who's hungry?" Clarke asks when she sees that Ravens starting to get emotional._

_Lexa stands up and walks around the couch towards the kitchen, she puts her hand on Ravens shoulder as she passes behind her and gives it a light squeeze._

_~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~_

 

Everything was going perfectly which is why it wasn't a surprise to anyone when something went wrong.  
It was Friday afternoon, all four girls had their last class of the day at the same time and decided they would go for a meal together afterwards to celebrate getting through their first week. Lexa was on the other side of campus for her last class so the other girls were waiting for her at the main building. They spotted Lexa approaching before she had noticed they were there and watching her. The Lexa that they were looking at was not the same Lexa they were used to seeing, this Lexa had a stoic expression on her face, her eyes didn't have the same light in them as they usually did, her posture was rigid, even the way she walked looked different, she looked very intimidating and if they weren't aware that underneath that stoic exterior there was a nice, friendly girl then they might have looked away for fear of being caught staring, Clarke thought she looked like a warrior walking into battle and scaring off her enemies using just the way she looked as her weapon, it wasn't difficult to imagine Lexa as a warrior, the words 'silent but deadly' came to mind as she continued watching her walk towards them.

She looked up as she got closer to the building and thats when she saw the three girls waiting for her, Clarke waved at her and suddenly the Lexa she was used to seeing was back a beautiful smile on her face as she waved back and started to walk towards them at a quicker pace. 

There was no time to prevent what happened next, unable to warn their friend they could only watch as the body of a familiar boy collided with Lexa causing both of them to fall flat on the ground.

Lexa falls face first down onto the pavement but manages to shield her face with her hands preventing any serious injuries before she hits the ground, knowing that scraped hands will heal easier than a broken nose would.

"What the fuck?! Why didn't you move out of the way?!" The boy spits as he pushes himself off of Lexa to stand.

Lexa flips herself over to look at the boy but doesn't stand up.

"Oh I'm sorry, I didn't realize you were so beautiful, my names Finn I'm sure you've heard of me, I'm very popular in this college, especially with the female students, I understand that it's very difficult for them not to obsess over me." He offers his hand to her and she can't tell if he's offering to help her up or waiting for her to shake his hand.

She doesn't take his hand but decides to get up from the ground just as she slips slightly while getting up she feels an arm wrap around her waist helping her steady herself, when she's fully standing she turns and finds a worried looking Clarke standing behind her.

"Are you ok?"

She nods.

"Oh I didn't realize you were friends with this bitch."

"Fuck off Finn."

"No, I was talking to this pretty girl, I'm not going to stop talking to her just because you're jealous, so you're the one that should fuck off Clarke." He took a step towards Clarke as he spat the last few words at her.

Lexa jumps in front of Clarke, her face barely an inch from Finns, shes shaking with anger, directing a glare at the boy that could frighten even the toughest people in this world, a deep growl begging to escape from her throat but it never does, even without releasing the sound Finn still gets scared, he falls back and lands on the pavement with a howl. Lexa still doesn't calm down when he's on the ground still glaring at him, the only thing stopping her from attacking him is the knowledge that Clarke is watching. Finn pushes himself off of the ground and starts running like his life depends on it.

Lexa feels a hand on her shoulder and her expression softens as she turns to look at Clarke, she starts to worry Clarke might have been hurt and she hadn't witnessed it so she looks over Clarke's whole body checking for any sign of injury.

Clarke watches Lexa's eyes look all over her body and starts to blush needing it to stop before she starts to resemble a tomato she speaks up. "Lex, don't worry, I'm not hurt."

Lexa looks up and then launches at Clarke enveloping her in a tight hug, surprising both Clarke and herself she usually didn't initiate hugs but she's glad she did, she needed to show how relieved she is that Clarke is safe and unharmed.

It took Clarke a moment to realize Lexa was hugging her, when she did she quickly leaned into her embrace and wrapped her own arms around her.

They stayed like that until the two other girls came over and Raven spoke. "That was awesome Woods, Finn looks like he shit himself and I recorded the whole thing so we can watch it over and over again." She turns her phone towards the two girls to show them the video.

"I didn't think you could get any cooler but you just did." Octavia raises her hand to high five Lexa but lowers it when she notices the damage done to her hands from the fall, she gasps at the sight. "Lexa, your hand is bleeding."

Clarke takes Lexa's hand in her own and turns it over to examine it. "I'm gonna take Lexa home and clean these cuts."

"We'll get the food and bring it home, you take the car and we'll walk back." Octavia tells her.

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah, it's not too far and we don't want those cuts to get infected so the quicker you get home the better." Raven responds.

"Thanks, we'll see you at home."

 

* * *

 

 

_Back at the apartment._

 

Clarke had helped Lexa wash her hands before she guided her over to the couch and went off in search of the first aid kit that her mother had given her.

She comes back a few minutes later with antiseptic cream and sits on the coffee table across from her taking one of her hands in her own to start spreading the cream on them.

"I should probably explain what happened between me and Finn."

Lexa shrugged to say that she could if she wanted to but didn't have to.

"Finn and I were in a relationship when we were in high school. We were together for a little over two years and I thought that our relationship was perfect, Raven was the one to finally open my eyes and see that he wasn't who I thought he was."

_~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~_

_"Clarke you've got to listen to me, he's cheating on you." Raven pleads from her spot on the bed._

_"He's not cheating Raven, our relationship has been better than ever the last couple of weeks, why would he cheat on me when we're happy?" Clarke says as she paces around in her room._

_"Because he's a fuckboy, Clarke. He doesn't care about anyone but himself."_

_"Maybe the girl you saw him with was a friend and you just jumped to conclusions."_

_"Clarke, that was not a friendly kiss and I've had my suspicions about Finn for a long time."_

_"I have too Clarke, I'm sorry but I believe Raven." Octavia adds with a sad expression._

_"Fine, if you're both so sure Finn's such a bad guy then prove it."_

_~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~_

_Later._

_"Hey, is Clarke here?"_

_"She's not home yet but you can hangout with me until she gets here if you want?"_

_Finn looks her up and down lingering on her cleavage for far too long, Raven has to stop herself from rolling her eyes at him. "I'd like that, you and I never get to spend any time alone."_

_'That's because I hate you asshole.' Raven thinks before moving out of the way to let him in._

_Raven sits on the couch and Finn sits down next to her, despite there being plenty of free space he sits close enough that their arms are touching._

_"You know Raven I really don't understand how you're single, I mean you're so pretty and funny there should be a long line of people hoping to be the lucky one you want."_

_"I never knew you were so charming Finn."_

_"I'm sure there's a lot you don't know about me." He places his arm on the back of the couch behind Raven._

_"Oh yeah? Like what?"_

_"How good I am at keeping secrets."_

_"What kind of secrets?"_

_"Secrets that Clarke never needs to find out about." He leans a little closer._

_"She'll never know?"_

_"Never." Closer again._

_"How can I be sure she'll never know?"_

_"Well I've kept all those secrets for years and she's never found out."_

_"All those? So there's more than just one secret."_

_"I'll be straight with you, I've spent a lot of time with girls that aren't Clarke in the time that we've been together so I can guarantee that she will not know about you and me, so can we make out now?" He moves far too close and Raven can feel his disgusting breath hitting her cheek._

_"Never, you fucking asshole." She jumps up from the couch and starts walking towards the kitchen as Clarke and Octavia both exit the kitchen._

_"I can't believe you Finn, how could you do this to me?!"_

_"Clarke, it's not what you think, Raven made me say all those things, she was flirting with me."_

_"You have the nerve to try to pin this on Raven?! I heard everything Finn, I'm not an idiot."_

_Clarke saw something change In Finn and suddenly his face looked sinister. "Could've fooled me." As soon as he said it he was knocked to the ground by a powerful punch to his right eye._

_"Call her an idiot again and I'll rip you to shreds fuckboy." Raven spits the words at him._

_"I could sue you for that bitch."_

_"Sue her and I'll tell your dad about you crashing his car and saying it was stolen."_

_"You're not worth all this trouble, there's plenty of other girls that want me, I'm done with you Clarke."_

_"Good, I don't ever want to see you again."_

_"I hope you get herpes manwhore." Octavia shouts as he leaves._

_"I'm so sorry I should've believed you."_

_"You're sorry? Clarke we're the ones that are sorry." Octavia takes on a much softer tone._

_"Sorry for what?"_

_"That you ever met that asshole, that we didn't tell you sooner about us not trusting him." Raven replies._

_"None of this is your fault, it's mine I should've believed you not him."_

_"You listen to me Clarke this is not your fault, you loved him and he convinced you that he loved you too, you had no reason to believe that he would be cheating on you, you were blinded by love." Raven says the words with such determination that Clarke knows she wants her to believe it's true._

_"And now he's blinded by Raven." Octavia states with a proud smile._

_"Thanks for defending me Rae." Clarke looks down at Raven's hand. "We should put some ice on your hand."_

_~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~_

 

"He didn't leave me alone after that, he kept trying to apologize to me, asking if we could get back together and blaming all his problems on his parents. He tried to convince me that it was because of the way they raised him but I've met them both and they're good people. Finn's problem is that he's rich and thinks he can do whatever he wants because of that, he even bought his way into this school by getting his dad to donate a huge amount of money to the school. So yeah that's the Finn story, I got my heart broken by a selfish little rich boy."

Lexa is fuming at this point ready to end this selfish little rich boy that had the audacity to hurt Clarke. She leaps off the couch, grabs her leather jacket off of the back of it and makes her way to the door.

"Lex?" When Lexa doesn't stop or turn around to look at her, Clarke worries not knowing what she's thinking or doing. When she walks out the door Clarke jumps from her seat and rushes after her.

"Lexa?"

She can't hear Clarke, she can't hear anything around her, all she can hear is her own angry thoughts.

Clarke finally catches up to her, she wraps her fingers around Lexa's wrist.

Lexa stops and turns her body towards Clarke but her eyes stay focused on the stairs.

"Lex....Lexa, look at me." When Lexa doesn't turn her head to face her she puts her hands on Lexa's cheeks and makes her turn to look at her.

Lexa only realizes now that Clarke was trying to stop her, she feels guilty for not hearing her and she avoids eye contact.

"Lexa, please listen to me." Lexa finally locks eyes with Clarke.

"I don't care about what he did to me anymore but I do care about you and I don't want you getting in trouble because of that asshole, promise me you won't go after him."

Lexa nods reluctantly.

Clarke moves her hands from Lexa's cheeks to wrap around the back of her head and pulls Lexa into a firm hug.

"Thank you for caring so much."

Lexa couldn't understand who wouldn't care about someone as incredible as Clarke.

"You two alright?" Raven asks from the top of the stairs.

"Yeah we're good, I told Lex about Finn and she was going to hurt him."

"Count us in. Finn deserves a beating for hurting our girls." Octavia has a mischievous smile showing.

"Nope, no fighting. Finn will get what he deserves someday but none of you will get in trouble for it, understood?"

Raven nods, having already had the pleasure of hitting Finn she's not too obsessed with beating him anymore, especially since Clarke has Lexa now.

"O?"

"I can't even rough him up just a little bit?"

"I have no way of stopping him from suing you now, O."

"Fine."

 

* * *

 

 

Abby had been far more excited about meeting Lexa than any of the girls had expected her to be. She had texted Clarke during the week asking her what she had cooked for Lexa so that she could get a rough idea of what she liked. She called twice to make sure that Lexa was comfortable meeting her. Sunday morning Clarke received another text from her mother asking her to text her as soon as they left so that she would know how long it would be before they got there.

When they did get there the three girls were surprised to find Abby waiting on the front porch, Lexa hadn't seen this as unusual since she hadn't known that usually the woman would just greet the girls inside the house.

The three girls hopped out of the car as soon as they stopped and wrapped around Abby in their group hug.

Lexa took her time getting out of the car, unsure of what to do while the four others were hugging, she had made a cheesecake for Abby, Clarke had insisted that she didn't have to but Lexa wanted to do something for her, so she took her time getting it from the car.

"You must be Lexa." She poked her head out of the car to see Abby approaching her with a big smile showing.

Lexa nods in response, a small smile of her own showing.

"It's great to meet you, I'm Abby." She shakes Lexa's empty hand.

Lexa holds out the cheesecake for Abby.

"Did you make this?"

Lexa nods.

"It looks delicious, the girls are big fans of everything you've cooked for them I'm sure I will be too."

Lexa smile grew as she looked over at the girls and then back at Abby.

"Dinners almost ready, come inside and the girls can give you a tour of the house."

Lexa nods and follows Abby into her house with the three other girls following close behind. Once inside Clarke, Octavia and Raven show Lexa all the rooms in the house, each of them taking turns to show Lexa their own rooms. 

Abby calls them to come for dinner while Raven is in the middle of showing Lexa one of her experiments, the four of them rush to the table. Octavia and Raven sit opposite to Lexa and Clarke with Abby sitting at the head of the table close to Lexa and Raven.

They eat mostly in silence. After dinner Abby gives them each a slice of Lexa's cheesecake.

"This is incredible Lexa, I'm jealous the girls get to eat like this all the time, would you consider leaving these three to move in here instead?" Abby jokingly asks.  
Lexa smiles in response.

"Sorry Mama Griff, you know we love you but we'll fight to the death to keep Woods with us."

"Fair enough, I won't steal her away from you, you'll come back for dinner again next week though, won't you?"

Lexa nods happily in response.

Abby asks the girls about their first week back at college and they all start telling her excitedly about their teachers and classes. Raven tells her about teaching Lexa how to take off her brace and what a quick learner she is, Abby doesn't mention how important it is that Raven had done that, already knowing that Clarke and Octavia would have done that, it makes her realize that Lexa is very special to the girls after only knowing her for a little over a week.

It's only once Raven finished talking about that to Abby that Octavia remembers what had happened on Friday.

"Mama G there was a fight." She almost yells.

"What?! Are you all ok?" Abby asks concerned.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to just blurt it out, I just remembered and it wasn't really a fight more like an argument, Raven show her the video."

Raven pulls out her phone and Octavia explains what happened while Abby watches it. "Finn knocked Lexa down and then he was an asshole to Clarke, when he got too close to her Lexa jumped in front of Clarke to protect her, she gave him this fierce look and he landed on his ass and ran away from her, it was the best thing I've ever seen."

"You did all that Lexa?"

Lexa shrugged shyly, worried that Abby might not approve.

Abby placed her hand on Lexa's shoulder and squeezed slightly to get Lexa to look at her. "Thank you for protecting Clarke."

Lexa nods and relaxes her shoulders.

Abby looks down at Lexa's hands, she had noticed the cuts when Lexa had given her the cheescake but didn't want to question her about it after just meeting her. "Is that why you have so many cuts on your hands? From the fall?"

Lexa nods again while looking at them.

"Oh yeah, I meant to ask if you have anything that will heal them faster, all I could put on them was antiseptic cream."

"I'm sure I have something that might help, come into the kitchen with me Lexa and we'll take care of it."

Lexa gets up from her chair ready to follow Abby.

"Raven will you take care of the dishes?"

Raven nods and gets up from her chair.

"Clarke and O you go relax for a while."

Clarke gets up from her chair to look into Lexa's eyes. "Do you need me to come with you?"

Lexa shakes her head and gives Clarke a soft smile.

"Are you sure?"

"Clarke she'll be fine I'll take care of her."

"Fine, just...be gentle."

Abby chuckles and shakes her head, it's very obvious to her how much her daughter likes this girl. "I'm a damn good doctor, remember?"

Clarke looks at Lexa one last time before she sighs and walks over to sit with Octavia.

Abby leads the way into the kitchen and tells Lexa to take a seat at the table while she gets her medical kit.

Raven follows them in with a pile of dishes in her hands, she puts the dishes on the counter and is just about to put them in the dishwasher when she spots the photo albums on the table near Lexa. "Wanna see something interesting while you're getting patched up?"

Lexa nods enthusiastically, welcoming any distraction from the sting she's sure she will feel.

Raven sits next to her, she takes the first one from the stack and flips it open before sliding it in front of Lexa. "That's little baby Griff."

Lexa looks at it and smiles seeing the photo of Clarke in her mother's arms in a hospital bed.

Just then Abby walks into the kitchen with a variety of things in her hands, she stands next to Lexa looking at the photo. "She grew up so quickly."

Lexa jumps slightly not realizing Abby had been there, she goes to close the album but Abby stops her before she does. "You can look at them Lexa, I took them off the bookcase earlier so I could show you them."

"It's true, I just beat her to it."

Lexa nods and flips to the next page of pictures.

Abby sits in the seat across from Lexa and takes her hand. When she sees how many cuts there are she realizes that Lexa must have pushed her hands out to stop her fall. "Does it hurt when you close your hands?"

Lexa shakes her hand from side to side indicating that it only hurts a little.

"I can give you a doctor's note for class if you want?"

Lexa smiles but shakes her head, she doesn't know anyone in her class so not taking notes would be a bad idea.

Abby picks up one of the tubes she had brought into the kitchen and examines it for a moment before she pours a small amount of the cream on her hand and starts gently rubbing it on the cuts. "This one should heal them in two or three days, you'll have to get one of the girls to apply it twice a day for you."

"I'll inform the others, back in a minute." Raven gets up and walks to the couch before sitting down next to Octavia. 

Clarke is sitting on the armchair tapping her foot nervously. "How's it going?"

"This one has been acting like Lexa's in surgery or something." Octavia rolls her eyes as she says it but a small smile is showing.

"Relax Griff, our girl hasn't even flinched, I think she might have a high pain tolerance."

Clarke breathes a sigh of relief.

"Abby has some cream she said would heal Lexa's hands in a few days if one of us puts it on for her twice a day."

"I can do that." Clarke answered before Raven even finished the last word. "I'll go tell her now."

"Whoa Griff chill, give them some time to bond."

Clarke huffs. "Fine."

Octavia turns the TV on to distract Clarke and Raven goes back to the kitchen to deal with the dishes.

 

* * *

 

 

A little while later Abby and Lexa join the others. Raven and Octavia are both looking behind the couch towards the stairs.

"What's going on girls?"

Raven simply points to where they were looking.

Abby walks closer to them and sees what they are looking at, Clarke is standing at the bottom of the staircase with her arms wrapped around herself looking at a picture of her father. Without another word Abby walks around the couch and over to her daughter.

"Hey."

"Hi." Clarke responds without taking her eyes off the picture.

"Something on your mind?"

Clarke stays silent for a moment. "Do you think he would've liked Lexa?"

"Oh honey, he would have loved her, you know that." Abby tells her, when Clarke doesn't respond she decides to tell her what her husband would have done if he were here. "He probably would've pulled her into a bear hug, picked her up off the ground and spun her around as soon as she stepped out of your car today, he would have high fived her for scaring Finn off and he would have battled it out with all of us just to get the rest of that cheesecake to himself."

Clarke hums. "I just wish he could have met her, I'm lucky I did but if I'd met her sooner she could've met him."

"I know honey but we can't change the past, you know deep down how much your dad would've loved her." Abby gave her arm a light squeeze before going back to the other girls, she saw the concerned look on Lexa's face as she turned around and decided to walk over to her. "Lexa, I think Clarke would like to speak to you."

Lexa never took her eyes off Clarke as she nodded and got off her chair to join Clarke.

Clarke turned her head to look at Lexa. "Hey." She gave her a small smile after whispering it, she dropped her arms so that she was no longer hugging herself.

Lexa gave her a worried look when she saw the sadness in Clarke's eyes.

"This is my dad, Jake. I was just thinking about how much he would've loved you, I really wish you could've met him."

Lexa knew then why she looked so sad, she wanted to take the pain of loss away from her but she knew she couldn't. She took Clarke's hand in her own. With her other hand Lexa pointed to her own eyes, pointed towards the picture and then to Clarke.

"I have his eyes?"

Lexa nods and when Clarke smiles at her she lifts her hand and runs her thumb over the side of Clarke's smile before pointing at the picture again, Clarke has to stop herself from shivering at Lexa's touch.

"His smile too?"

Lexa nods again then moves her hand and places it over Clarke's heart.

Clarke tries to keep her heartbeat steady so Lexa won't notice how fast it is beating now, it took a moment for her to speak, trying to make sure her voice would sound normal so Lexa wouldn't notice the effect she has on her. "He will always be with me."

Clarke takes her hand out of Lexa's and turns her body to envelop her in a gentle but firm hug. "I'm so glad I have you in my life." She whispers in Lexa's ear.

Lexa brings her arms up around Clarke and tightens the hug a little.

"Told you they're disgustingly cute." Octavia says to Abby in a hushed tone.

"I agree, my daughter and her future girlfriend are very cute." 

Raven and Octavia smile and giggle a little.

When Clarke and Lexa eventually pull apart Clarke remembers something. "How are your hands?" Clarke pulls her hands into her own to examine them. "I hope it didn't hurt."

Lexa shakes her head.

"Good." They lock eyes and stay like that for a moment. They stop when Clarke goes over to Abby, Octavia and Raven and whispers something leaving a confused Lexa behind. She comes back quickly but now has the other three with her. "There's a place I want to show you, is that ok?"

Lexa nods and follows Clarke as they all walk out the door and get into the car. They drive for five minutes before they reach their destination. Lexa looks in awe of the sight in front of her when she gets out of the car.

"The painting I gave you, this is where I painted it."

Lexa nods slowly without looking away.

"This is where Clarke would go whenever she was having a hard time and needed to clear her head, it's a very special place to her."

Without thinking about it Clarke grabs onto Lexa's hand, interlaces their fingers and walked towards one of the trails with Abby, Raven and Octavia following behind them.

 

* * *

 

 

_ A while later. _

 

Abby, Raven and Octavia were a little bit further down the trail than Lexa and Clarke were. Clarke stopped to take a photo of some flowers she wanted to draw when she got home. Lexa stopped partly because Clarke did and also because of the tree next to them. Lexa always had a fascination with trees, her favourite place was in any high tree she could find, the higher up she was the clearer her mind would be.

While Clarke was taking photos of the flowers Lexa started to climb the giant tree, ignoring the pain in her hands.

Clarke turned to talk to Lexa but she was nowhere to be seen, panic started to set in. "Lex?...Lexa where are you?"

Lexa wrapped her legs around the sturdy branch to hold her up as she hung upside down from it.

"Lexa, what are you doing? That's dangerous."

Lexa holds out her hand to Clarke signifying that she should join her in the tree.

"No way Lex, I'm not going up there and you shouldn't be up there either."

Lexa used her best puppy dog eyes and jutted her bottom lip out to form a pout.

"Fine but you should know it's cruel to use that look against me and you have to promise to keep me safe."

Lexa nods and has a big beaming smile on her face.

Clarke starts to climb. Luckily Lexa wasn't too high up in the tree yet so it was easy enough for Clarke to reach her. Lexa helped her up when she reached the branch below her, they sat facing each other.

"So you're like a female Tarzan?"

Lexa smiles and bangs her hands against her chest like Tarzan would.

Clarke chuckles and Lexa feels a sense of pride for being the reason she did that. Clarke slips as she chuckles and Lexa lunges forward grabbing onto Clarke's waist and helping her steady herself.

It's only once Clarke feels safe enough to let out the breath she had been holding in and opens her eyes that she notices how close they are, she turns her head and can almost feel Lexa's cheek touching her nose.

Lexa goes to retract her hands and sit back to look at Clarke but when she moves her head just slightly her nose grazes against Clarke's, her breath catches in her throat and her eyes lock onto Clarke's, she hadn't realized they were this close.

"Beautiful." Clarke whispers. Lexa's eyebrow raises and Clarke quickly scrambles to cover it up. "I mean...umm...the view up here is beautiful."

"Is there a reason you two are up there or is it just to scare me?" They look down and see Abby standing at the bottom of the tree with her arms crossed looking up at the two girls with Raven and Octavia standing behind her.

"The view is amazing up here."

"I thought you're afraid of heights Griff?"

Lexa feels awful hearing that Clarke had a fear of heights and she made her climb the tree.

Clarke knows Lexa's beating herself up over this. "I'm not scared of heights Raven, I just feel safer being on the ground but I'm starting to like it up here now." 

Lexa looks up to see Clarke smiling at her.

"It's great that you've conquered your fear Clarke and thank you for helping her do that Lexa but could you both come down now? I'm worried one of you will get hurt, you're already injured Lexa."

"Alright, we're coming down now."

Lexa goes first helping Clarke down to each branch as she makes her way down to the ground, being extra cautious so they don't scare Abby.

 

* * *

 

 

"Come on Lexa, join us." Abby tells her from the middle of the group hug.

Lexa shakes her head not wanting to intrude on their moment.

"You know you wanna get in on this hug." Octavia says from where she's wrapped around the side of Abby with her arms around Clarke and Raven who are hugging Abby from the front and behind leaving one side open for someone else to join in.

Lexa shifts from one foot to the other but doesn't join them.

"Woods get your ass over here and show us some love." Raven demands.

Lexa finally does as she is told and goes to the side that none of them were hugging, she thought it would be awkward and uncomfortable but it was surprisingly nice, cosy even.

When they break from the hug Abby pulls Lexa into a hug on her own this time. "Thanks for coming today."

Clarke smiles at the sight in front of her. "I think it's safe to say mom loves you."

"Yeah I do." Abby pulls back from the hug and places her hands on Lexa's shoulders. "Lexa you are one of my girls now."

Lexa beams in response.

Raven punches Lexa lightly on the arm. "Welcome to the family Woods."

 

* * *

 

 

The smile never left Lexa's face that day, she decided that this had been one of the best days of her life, which led to the realization that all the days since she moved in with Clarke have been some of the best days of her life.

 

* * *

 

 

_Later that night_

 

Clarke isn't sure why she woke up in the middle of the night all she knows is that she has never been as thirsty as she is right now. She slips out of bed and shuffles to the kitchen. After drinking two glasses of water she pads back down towards her room but stops outside Lexa's room. The door is slightly open and she can hear what sounds like kicking. She knocks and waits a moment to see if Lexa will come to the door. When she doesn't open the door and the kicking sound continues she knocks again, louder this time. Again Lexa doesn't respond in any way and the sound has gotten louder so Clarke decides to go in.

"Lex?" Clarke turns the light on, she sees Lexa kicking her legs and swinging her arms on the bed, her eyes are closed and Clarke knows that she's having a nightmare, she makes her way over to the bed and shakes Lexa slightly to wake her but it doesn't work. "Lexa, please wake up." She pleads, shaking her slightly again. This time Lexa bolted up in the bed, tears streaming down her cheeks as she searched for the source of the voice she had heard so clearly in her sleep, when she spots Clarke she grabs onto her wrist and pulls her closer to the bed, looking at her with pleading eyes.

Clarke allows Lexa to pull her down onto the bed so that she is sitting next to her, she pulls her shirt sleeve over her hand and then uses it to wipe away Lexa's tears. Once they're all gone she wraps her arm around Lexa and pulls her into her side, Lexa lays her head on Clarke's shoulder. "It was a nightmare sweetie, it wasn't real." Clarke didn't notice that she used the pet name and continued to comfort Lexa. "Whatever it was it can't hurt you, I won't let it, I'll keep you safe."

When Lexa feels a little better she tries to fall back on the bed again but stops when Clarke takes that as her cue to leave and tries to retract her hand, Lexa grabs Clarke's other hand, shakes her head and looks at her with pleading eyes again.

"You want me to stay?" 

Lexa nods and after a moment Clarke flops back down onto the bed, turns so she's lying on her side and smiles up at Lexa.

She waits until Lexa is lying down facing her to speak again. "I'm not going to leave you, I won't go anywhere, I promise." There was no way Clarke could know just how important that promise was to Lexa. A fresh wave of tears start falling from her eyes, she grabs onto the collar of Clarke's shirt, balling the fabric into her fists and shuffling closer to her until her body is pressed against Clarke's, her head tucked under Clarke's chin.

After a few minutes Clarke felt Lexa's grip on her shirt loosen slightly and her breathing sounded much calmer, she realized she had fallen asleep. She tried to slowly get out of the bed to turn off the light but as soon as she moved Lexa tightened her grip on her shirt again, Clarke pulled back just slightly to look at Lexa's face, she saw that Lexa's eyes were closed and she was frowning. Clarke chuckled softly when she realized that Lexa was definitely a cuddler.

After two more attempts at slipping out of the bed and getting the same response as the first time Clarke decided to leave the light on and fell asleep holding Lexa.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you enjoy this one, i think the next one will be a very major part of this story. Also i just wrote the very last chapter of this story which is weird since i haven't even written the next chapter yet but i have it saved for later and now I know what I'm working towards :)


	7. I do trust you

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> -Monty and Jasper  
> -jealousy   
> -Halloween  
> -Goodbyes  
> -A letter

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm so so so sorry it took me so long to update this.

 A few days after she met Abby she was introduced to Monty and Jasper. None of them worried about their reaction to the news that Lexa doesn't speak because they knew that Monty would be his usual wonderful self and Jasper would be entirely focused on the fact that there was a very pretty girl in his apartment. The four of them were sat with the two boys who were playing Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3. Monty had just beaten Jasper for the fourth time.

"Any interest in playing Lex?" Monty asks when Jasper announces he's tired of losing.

Lexa nods.

"Good, maybe you'll be harder to beat."

Just a few minutes later while Clarke and Raven were in the kitchen, Lexa beat Monty. 

Monty couldn't figure out how he lost, he had the stronger team, he should have been able to beat Lexa easily since she only used rocket racoon during the whole fight, Wesker alone should have been able to beat her character.

"HOLY FUCK!!!" Jasper jumped out of his seat.

"What happened?" Raven asked coming out of the kitchen followed by Clarke.

"Lexa beat Monty."

Clarke walks up to the back of the couch and stretches over it to wrap her arms around Lexa from behind. "I'm so proud of you."

"No one has ever beaten Monty." Octavia explains.

"Looks like you've finally met your match Monty." Raven fist bumps Lexa while she's speaking.

"I...how?"

"A hot girl that's better at playing games than Monty." Jasper got down on one knee in front of Lexa. "Please marry me."

Lexa's eyes widen and she looks at everyone but Jasper, silently pleading for help.

"You should back away Jasper." Octavia points in Clarke's direction when Jasper looks at her.

Lexa looks at Clarke too and sees the death glare she's directing at Jasper.

Jasper raises both his hands in the air and backs away from Lexa.

 

* * *

 

Clarke and Lexa slept in the same bed every night. At first it was a little awkward but Clarke never said anything to Lexa about it, she was afraid that if she did Lexa might put some distance between them. She would start the night in her own bed and then would wake up at the same time every night, just in time to help Lexa and afterwards she would stay for the rest of the night.  

After a few weeks this was no longer something only the two of them knew about.

 

* * *

 

One day Raven and Octavia dragged themselves over to Lexa and Clarke's apartment but we're stopped when they discovered the door was still locked.  

This was unusual because every morning either Lexa or Clarke would unlock the door depending on who woke up first so that Raven and Octavia could come in whenever they wanted to.

They tried knocking but there was no answer.

"Think they overslept?"

Raven pressed her ear against the door before answering. "Yup, I hear no movement."

"I'll run to the store and pick up some cereal for breakfast, you wake them up."

"On it, boss." Raven goes back into her apartment to get the spare key for the other apartment.

Raven opened the door and walked into the apartment, she made her way to Clarke's room first and pushed the door open. She was surprised to find that Clarke's room was empty.

She walked back to the bathroom, thinking that's where Clarke would be but the door was open and no one was in there.

Raven wondered if it was a good idea to go into Lexa's room, she decided that if she didn't Lexa would be late for her first class of the day and she didn't want that to happen. She slowly opened the door and was surprised to find the two roommates cuddled up together. She takes a picture of them, leaves the room as quietly as she can and sends it to the group chat. 

 **Raven (07:40)  
I think someones been keeping secrets from us.**  

 **Octavia (07:41)  
Oh my god, are they cuddling?**

 **Raven (07:41)  
Yes, in Lexa's bed.**  

 **Abby (07:42)  
Aww Lexa's the little spoon.**

 **Raven (07:43)  
I didn't even notice that, not so badass when she sleeps.**

 **Octavia (07:45)  
Has this happened before?**

 **Raven (07:45)  
How would I know? I'm as clueless about this as you are.**

 **Octavia (07:46)  
Wake them up and ask.**

 **Abby (07:47)  
Not a good idea, Clarke will get defensive if you ask, she's has to be the one to tell you.**

 **Raven (07:47)  
How do I get her to do that?**

 **Abby (07:49)  
You said she's in Lexa's bed right? Ask her if Lexa is alright.**

 **Octavia (07:50)  
You still have to wake them up though, they'll be late for class if you don't.**

 **Raven (07:51)  
I'll go bang the front door so they don't know I was in here.**

 **Octavia (07:53)  
I'll be back with breakfast before they're dressed, see you in a few.**

 **Abby (07:54)  
Heading into work now, I'll talk to you girls later, remember don't push Clarke let her tell you.  
**

Raven makes her way over to the front door and pulls it open before she slams it shut. "Wakey wakey, rise and shine!" She shouts as she makes her way over to the couch and drops down onto it. 

After a few moments she hears Lexa's door open, she looks behind her to see Clarke sneaking out of the room, hoping Raven won't see her.

"Mornin'." Raven says, trying to bite back a smirk when she sees Clarke jump a little.

"Umm...hey Rae, how long have you been here?"

"Just got here." She nods her head towards Lexa's bedroom door. "Is Woods alright?"

"Uh yeah, she had a nightmare and didn't want to be alone so that's why I was in there."

"Does she have nightmares often?"

"She used to have them every night but they're getting less frequent."

"That's good, I'm glad you stayed with her."

Clarke sighs and sits down next to Raven. "Me too, I hate seeing her looking so hurt."

"It's really bad, huh?"

"When she wakes up she just looks so scared, whatever it is she dreams about must be awful, I wish I knew how to help her get rid of them completely."

"You can't do that Clarke, it's something only she can do but I'm sure just being there for her helps a lot."

"I hope so."

"What about you? Are you sleeping alright?"

"Yeah, why wouldn't I be?"

"I just mean you're not staying up all night watching over Lexa, are you? 'Cause I don't think she'd want you to do that."

Clarke remains silent for a moment. "Promise you won't make a big deal out of this if I tell you?"

"I promise."

"I'm not staying up but I do wake up when Lexa's having her nightmares. I don't know why I do, it's not like she makes a lot of noise, it's like I just know when I need to be awake."

Raven stays quiet for a minute, thinking about what Clarke just said. "Like Spidermans spidey-sense, you've got Lexie-sense."

"Rae you promised."

"I'm not making a big deal out of this Clarke, I'm just trying to say that it makes sense."

"So it does make some sort of sense then?"

"Yeah, you two have gotten really close over the last few weeks so it's not really surprising that you have a way of knowing when Lexa needs you."

"I suppose when you put it like that it does make sense."

"As long as you're both getting enough sleep to function on a daily basis, I don't see any problems with you being there for Lexa when she needs you."

"Thanks Rae, I feel better about it now and thanks for taking it seriously and not making fun of me."

"Clarke, you know when it comes to the serious stuff I'll always do my best to help you."

Before Clarke could respond the door burst open revealing a happy looking Octavia. "Egg McMuffins for all."

"I thought you were getting cereal?"

"I was but these seemed like a better idea." Octavia pulls one out of the bag and hands it to Raven. Clarke holds out her hand to take one from Octavia but she shakes her head. "Go get dressed first, these can be eaten on the way if we're running short on time."

Clarke reluctantly gets off the couch and disappears into her own room to get dressed.

"So? Get any info from her?"

"Lexa has nightmares so Clarke's been looking after her."

"That's good, I'm glad she's helping her."

 

* * *

 

After that conversation Clarke stopped sleeping in her own bed completely, at the end of the day she would go to her own room to get changed, walk back down the hallway to Lexa's room and climb into bed with her. Lexa never seemed to mind having Clarke in her bed, she would even wait until Clarke was settled in next to her before she would close her eyes.

 

* * *

 

On Saturday's Lexa would get in her car and drive to a nearby parking lot to call her family, she wasn't sure if she would've been able to speak knowing Clarke was nearby and she didn't want the first thing Clarke heard her say to be angry words aimed at Anya. 

She was close to being able to speak to Clarke she was sure of it. Alie had been helping her work through her issues, she was lucky to have Alie in her life, she had learned that Alie was one of the best psychologists in the country, she had a real gift for getting inside people's minds.

 

* * *

 

Clarke had never been the type of person who gets jealous easily, until she met Lexa. 

Clarke was walking down a corridor on her way to her next class when she noticed that Lexa was walking just ahead of her going in the same direction. She started to pick up her pace hoping she could catch up to Lexa. 

She was only a few feet away from her when she noticed a group of girls watching Lexa as she got closer to them. One of the girls Clarke recognized as Harper, she met her last year, Octavia introduced them, they had a class together but Clarke never really ran into her since then. She didn't have any issues with the girl, she remembered thinking she was nice but now she had some huge issues with this girl because she was looking at Lexa like all she wanted was to rip her clothes off.

"Hey Lexa." Clarke heard Harper say in way she considered to be very flirtatious.

Lexa waved quickly.

Clarke saw one of Harper's friends nudging her forward, she assumed it was to get her to stop Lexa in her tracks so she could speak to her.

Lexa tensed when the girl started moving closer to her.

Clarke noticed this and decided that she had to get to Lexa before Harper did, she picked up her pace again until she was practically running. When she reached Lexa's side she put her arm around Lexa's waist.

Lexa stopped walking, she tensed even more but relaxed when she looked to her side and saw Clarke smiling at her. She moved in front of Clarke so that she was facing her and pulled her into a hug.

Clarke didn't know why Lexa was hugging her but she didn't care, she closed her eyes, smiled a little wider and just enjoyed the moment. 

Neither of them knew that Octavia had seen the whole scene play out in front of her. She had been on her way to meet Lexa for lunch but when she saw what was happening she stopped, pulled out her phone and recorded the whole thing to show Raven later. 

While they were hugging she stopped recording and decided to take a picture too. When she looks at the picture she sees how happy Lexa looks and it causes her to smile too, Lexa's eyes are closed too and she has the biggest smile on her face as she holds Clarke in her arms, Octavia looks to the side of Clarke and Lexa in the photo and sees that she got a very jealous looking Harper in the picture too, she liked Harper but she knew Clarke and Lexa belonged together and she didn't want anyone getting between them. She sends the picture to Abby and Raven along with a message.

**Octavia (14:54)  
Clarkey got jealous.  
**

She checked what time it was before she slipped her phone back into her pocket and walked over to the two who were still hugging. "As much as I love how happy you two look right now I have to break up your moment, me and Lex have a lunch date and you have a class you're going to be late for." 

Clarke pulls away from Lexa and pouts.

"Don't worry Clarkey, I'll look after your girl." She practically yells making sure Harper hears her, she does and she storms off in a huff, her friends follow her.

Clarke was going to protest Lexa being called her girl when she spotted Harper storming off and decides she doesn't mind Lexa being called her girl.

 

* * *

 

Lexa officially met Marcus Kane at Abby's house the third time she went there. According to the other girls he would join them for dinner once a month giving them three dinners alone with Abby. 

"Sorry I'm late— Oh Ms.Woods, good to see you again."

"You know Lexa?" Clarke looks between them both unsure of how they're linked.

"Yes I'm one of her teachers and we know a lot of the same people, it's great to officially meet you." He offers his hand to her and she shakes it. "Actually since you're here could I talk to you about something, it's about the lessons this week."

She nods and waits for him to tell her.

"Could we discuss it in another room, I don't want to bore them with school stuff."

Lexa gets up from her chair and follows him to the couch.

"I wasn't sure if I should tell you this but you're a part of our family now so I think it's important that I be honest with you. I am the person that Thelonious called about getting you a place in Arkadia University."

Lexa looks surprised, her expression quickly turns to a nervous look, she worries that maybe he's going to say he doesn't think she's good enough to be there.

"He told me all about you, he said that I would not be disappointed by you and he was right. Lexa, you are one of the best students I have ever had in my class."

Lexa feels both relieved and proud.

"I can see how focused and driven you are when you're in class. I have no doubt that you will be one of the very best lawyers when you graduate, me and Thelonious will probably gush over how proud we are of you every time we meet."

Lexa very nearly chuckled at the thought of it.

"You're a big source of happiness to Thelonious and Alie, you've made their lives so much better and from what I've heard you've been doing the same here. You are incredible Lexa. Life hasn't been easy for you but instead of falling apart you kept going, you deserve a life filled with happiness and I hope we can give you that or at least try to."

Lexa's eyes brimmed with tears.

Marcus gave her a moment to compose herself before he continued speaking.

"You don't have to worry about what Thelonious told me, I won't tell anyone, that is your story to tell. I'm glad I got the chance to tell you all this. Now, let's go join the others."

Marcus gave her a pat on the back before he went back into the kitchen.

 

* * *

 

Lexa found out that Halloween is Ravens favourite holiday, every year she would come up with a new backstory for them and she would make all of their costumes. 

This particular backstory was one she was very happy with. She was to be Commander Lexa, leader of the twelve clans and a total badass. On top of that she had a love interest, Clarke of the sky people who fell from the sky and became the leader of her people. They work together to save their people, along the way Clarke becomes her friend and then her lover but only after Lexa betrays Clarke and then earns her trust again. She didn't like the idea of betraying Clarke but she knew if it ever did happen she really would do everything she could to earn Clarke's trust again. 

"You're going to look so damn hot in this Woods, the ladies and gents won't be able to resist you." Raven announces as she walks in with their costumes draped over her arm.

Clarke refrains from voicing her thoughts about someone other than her being all over Lexa. 

Raven and Octavia see the jealousy seeping through the nonchalant look Clarke tried to keep on her face. 

Lexa shakes her head and Clarke knows that she's saying she doesn't want all the guys and girls all over her but what she doesn't know is that Lexa only wants to impress one girl.

Raven follows Lexa into her room to help her with the costume while Octavia helps Clarke with hers.

 

* * *

 

Clarke was sitting on the armchair waiting for Lexa and Raven to emerge from Lexa's room, Octavia had returned to her own apartment to get ready once she had finished making Clarke's face look like it was sort of dirty and curling her hair just a bit while making sure it still looked like it was slightly disheveled. 

Her costume was simple, a leather jacket, a blue top inside it, tight but comfortable black jeans and boots. She was so happy they got to use their real names this year, she didn't want to be punched in the arm again by Raven for forgetting her character's name, it was scary how serious Raven was about Halloween.

"Ready to meet the commander Griff?"

"Absolutely."

Lexa appears in front of her, she looks incredible. It was clear that Raven had put a lot of time into making Lexa's costume.Her hair was braided like it was everyday, there was a sticker Clarke recognized from one of the many boxes Raven had full of bits and pieces for her experiments, it was a golden gear. Raven had used a lot of black face paint to draw war paint on Lexa's face, it was all around her eyes and streaked down her cheeks and lighter below her eyes. She wore an old looking, floor-length black coat that was frayed at the edges below the waist, in the middle of the coat was a corset made of leather belts that was sewn onto it. The sleeves looked as though they had been cut in rows of lines all the way down them and then stitched back together again. There was a belt that traveled from under her right arm to her left shoulder, it seemed to be keeping what looked to be something similar to a pauldron from plate armor on her left shoulder, knowing Raven it was likely to be her own creation not something she bought, a red cape was attached beneath that stopped just above her hip, the hilt of a sword peeking out from under it, the cape was longer on the back, dragging along the floor when she walked. She wore jeans with patches on both of the thighs and grey knee high boots.

"Doesn't she look hot Griff?"

Clarke swallows hard, her throat suddenly very dry, she nods unable to formulate a sentence now.

Raven smirked, Clarke's reaction told her all the work she had put into making Lexa's costume was worth it. "I'm going to get ready, I'll be back in a few minutes."

 

* * *

 

When Octavia and Raven were finished getting ready they returned to the other apartment, they found Lexa sitting in the arm chair playing with her knife and Clarke sitting on the couch drawing Lexa, instead of an armchair she had drawn Lexa sitting on a throne made of wood, twisted branches stretched above her above her and four spears behind it 

"You really went all out on the costumes this year Rae, they're amazing." Clarke states when she sees Raven and Octavia. 

Octavia's costume was similar to Lexa's, different pieces of material had been sewn on to a leather jacket, a shoulder harness sheath with a blade in it, she had war paint on her face too, two long streaks of black below each eye and one above, she wore black jeans and boots, her hair was braided but it looked different than Lexa's. Her story was a mix of everything, she came down to earth with Clarke but soon discovered that she belonged on the ground, she was a warrior and she looked the part in this outfit.

Raven's costume was simple just like Clarke's. Her hair was tied up in a ponytail, she wore a cotton padded red bomber jacket, a blue top with holes torn in it and a darker blue top beneath that, she had black jeans and boots on. Around her neck there was necklace made of a metal charm in the shape of a raven, a gift she had gotten from Clarke years ago, Clarke smiled looking at it, Raven always had that necklace around her neck, some days it was hidden beneath her top and on others it would be on display, she hadn't thought of it being included in her costume but it did work perfectly with it. Ravens story was that she had come down to earth after Clarke and Octavia with the help of Abby who wanted to know if they were okay on earth. She helped Raven get to an escape pod on their space station and when Raven had fixed it she distracted Kane so that Raven could launch the escape pod, originally the plan was that both of them would go but if Abby hadn't stopped Kane then neither of them would have been able to get to earth.

"I'm tempted to wear this everyday." Octavia stated, looking at her outfit.

"We should take a picture for Mama Griff." Raven pulled out her phone and attached it to the selfie stick Octavia had given her as a gift.

 

* * *

 

Abby was in the locker room gathering her things after her shift had ended, she unlocked her phone to find a new message, she opened the group chat that someone had named 'Team Clexa'.   

**Octavia (20:40)**  
**Lexa has a new name.**

**Abby (21:02)**  
**Please tell me it's a nickname and that you didn't convince her to legally change her name.**

**Raven (21:03)**  
**Do you really think we would do that?**

**Abby (21:03)**  
**Yes.**

**Octavia (21:05)**  
**She's right Rae, it does sound like something we would do but we didn't do that Mama G.**

**Abby (21:06)**  
**Good, Lexa is a good name, I like it and it suits her.**

**Raven (21:07)**  
**Ok we get the message, we won't change it but would you like to know her new nickname?**

**Abby (21:07)**  
**Yes please.**

**Raven (21:08)  
Ok read my next text in a dramatic movie trailer voice.  
**

Abby chuckled but did as she was told.

**Raven (21:09)**  
**Lexa Woods is....the commander.**

**Abby (21:09)**  
**I like it but why?**

**Octavia (21:10)**  
**Commander of Clarke's heart.**

**Raven (21:11)**  
**Commander of Finn's bowel.**

**Octavia (21:12)**  
**Commander heart eyes.**

**Raven (21:13)**  
**Commander of chore duty.**

**Octavia (21:13)**  
**Angel in the streets....**

**Raven (21:14)**  
**Commander in the sheets.**

**Abby (21:15)**  
**Really didn't need to hear that last one.**

**Octavia (21:16)**  
**Sorry, think you'll like this one though,...Commander-in-law, maybe someday?**

**Abby (21:16)**  
**I do like that one.**

 

* * *

 

_One hour later._

 

Lexa was sitting on the couch with Clarke sitting next to her. She was still drinking her first beer, she decided that taking it slow would be the best option, she didn't want to risk her first words to Clarke being drunk words.  

Clarke had found her giving Raven a high five after she won a game of beer pong. She quickly made her way over to them and pulled Lexa with her over to the couch where they both had a great vantage point to watch Raven play again.

After Raven won her second game Clarke noticed Lexa looking at her nearly empty beer. "Stay here, I'll get you another." She placed her own beer on the small table next to Lexa. 

She went over to the table that was covered in a variety of different bottles, she picked up one of the beers and used the bottle opener to pull the cap off. She was making her way back to the couch when she noticed someone else heading straight over to Lexa, she realized it was Harper, she picked up her pace but Harper beat her to the couch and was sitting far too close to Lexa. 

Clarke felt her skin crawl looking at this girl so close to Lexa, she tried to read Lexa's expression but she had that same stoic look she had on her face whenever Clarke saw her walking alone in college. She made her way over to Lexa and handed her the beer.

She stood awkwardly for a moment unsure of what to do since Harper didn't look like she was going to leave any time soon. She turned to walk away from them but was stopped when she felt hands on her hips. Before she could turn around she was pulled down onto Lexa's lap.

Clarke turned slightly in her lap to see a desperate look in Lexa's eyes.

Lexa didn't want this girl from one of her classes sitting uncomfortably close to her and trying to seduce her, she wanted Clarke there. She never felt uncomfortable sitting with Clarke, even having Clarke on her lap felt right and if she ever attempted to flirt with her, Lexa knew she would never try to resist Clarke.

Clarke settled more comfortably in her lap when she knew that Lexa wanted her to stay.

Lexa picked up Clarke's drink and handed it to her before she picked up her own, they clinked their bottles together before drinking from them, never once breaking eye contact.

Harper storms off in a huff again, the two girls only remember then that she had been there the whole time.

 

* * *

 

Their night went on like that, Clarke would occasionally get up to get more drinks for them and as soon as she would come back Lexa would pat her leg silently telling Clarke to sit back down there.

Octavia dragged Clarke away at one point shouting something about shots, Clarke looked reluctant to go but relaxed when Monty sat down next to Lexa and gave her one of the Xbox controllers he was holding.

Clarke was glad that it was Monty that was with Lexa, she didn't want to see Jasper propose to Lexa again.

Just over a half hour later someone takes the controller out of Lexa's hands. Lexa looked up to see a giddy looking Clarke standing in front of her, she gives Jasper the controller before she sits on Lexa's lap and wraps her arms around her neck, she moves until her lips are grazing Lexa's ear. "I missed you sexy Lexie." 

Lexa shivered feeling Clarke's warm breath hitting her ear. She could smell the tequila on her breath when she had sat down, she realized that she must have had more than just the one shot.

"You looked adorable when you we're playing."

Lexa started to blush.

"You're tongue was poking out the side of your mouth and you were frowning like you do when you're studying but the words just won't stick in your mind and then you highlight it so you can try again later but you don't move on until you get it 'cause you're so determined to make it stick."

Lexa pulls back to look at Clarke, she didn't think Clarke knew that about her.

"I understand you Lexa."

_'You really do.'_ Lexa thinks as she smiles at her before pulling her closer again.

Clarke remains silent for a while after that, resting her head against Lexa's. She moves back to Lexa's ear when she speaks again. "Can I tell you something?"

Lexa nods slowly.

"You fixed me." Lexa pulls back again to look at Clarke, her brow furrowed in confusion. "Before I met you I didn't want to let anyone near my heart because they might hurt it but then you came along and I wanted to let you into my heart because I know you'll keep it safe."

Lexa looked surprised, she felt the same way about Clarke.

Clarke looked worried until Lexa smiled softly at her. She smiled back and then buried her face in Lexa's neck.

Clarke places two soft kisses there so light that Lexa doesn't know if it was intentional or accidental.

 

* * *

 

Later when they're in a cab going back to their apartments, Raven sitting in the passenger seat the other three in the back seat, Clarke makes a sleepy confession. "I could fall in love with you." Unfortunately for Clarke she didn't have much control over her voice when she was both tired and drunk so Raven, Octavia and the cab driver all heard her. 

Clarke had fallen asleep immediately after her confession. 

After a few minutes Raven looked at the driver and saw him smiling looking at Clarke and Lexa in the rear view mirror. "Are they a couple?"

"No, we wish they would be though." Raven lets out a frustrated sigh.

"They're cute together."

"If only they could see that."

"Sometimes it takes time to see that the love of your life has been right in front of you the whole time."

"Sounds like you've met your soulmate..." Raven trails off waiting for him to tell her his name.

"Miller and yeah I think I have."

"What's her name?" Octavia moves forward in her seat slightly so she can hear him better.

"It's a guy actually, his name is Bryan."

They hit a pothole, the jolt waking Clarke and Lexa. "What are we talking about?" Clarke yawns after asking them.

"We just discovered Miller here is a fellow member of the LGBT community and madly in love with a guy called Bryan."

"Bryan's a nice name." Clarke states, starting to feel more awake now.

"Well it suits him then, he's a really nice guy, so now you know I'm gay, you said a fellow member so I'm guessing you're not exactly straight?"

"Your guess is correct, I'm bi." 

"What about you three?"

"I'm straight." Octavia smiles at him in the mirror.

"Bi too." Clarke responds smiling at him in the mirror too. She misses Lexa's attempt at hiding a huge smile but Raven sees it.

"We actually don't know Lexa's sexuality, I'm sorry Lex I'm not really sure how to find out." Octavia gives her an apologetic look.

"Ooh I know, who would you rather make out with, Miller, Clarke, both?" Raven turns around fully in her seat to look at Lexa.

Lexa points at Clarke before Raven even finishes asking the question.

"Just Clarke?"

Lexa nods.

This time it's Clarke that has to hide her smile.

"I'm glad I've got a car full of good people." Miller smiles at Lexa in the mirror.

"Have you had a lot of bad people in your car?"

"I honestly don't know, I don't talk about sexuality while I'm working anymore, the last time I brought it up I got beaten up by three drunk guys so I try to keep the conversations short to be safe."

"I'm so sorry they hurt you." Octavia reached forward to squeeze Miller's shoulder.

"People suck." Raven states.

"It's impossible to know what type of person is going to get in the cab, it's just safer not to talk much. I wish it was different but there's no way for me to know whether or not the person sitting in my car is going to attack me because I'm in love with a man"

Everyone stays quiet for a little while after that, 

Lexa wrapped her arm around Clarke, the image of her getting hurt because of who she loves flashed through her mind and it terrified her, she wanted to keep her close so no hateful person could ever hurt her, she knew she couldn't be with Clarke all the time but she hoped that if that was to happen she could be there to protect Clarke.  

Raven breaks the silence."You got a card Miller?"

"Uh yeah."

"Well you give us a few of your cards and we'll spread the news to everyone we know to only call you when they need a cab."

"Oh no, I couldn't ask you to do that."

"You're not asking, we're offering, let us do this Miller."

"Plus it'll be great not having to worry about getting into a cab with a homophobic driver and you won't have to worry about homophobic passengers." Clarke adds.

"I am so glad you got in my cab." Miller stated, quickly smiling at each of them.

 

* * *

 

The next time Lexa saw Abby the four of them walked into the kitchen to find Abby kneeling on the floor bowing her head. 

"It is an honour to have you in my home Commander."

The three girls start laughing and Lexa smiles.

Abby gets up off the floor and gives Lexa a framed photo of the four of them, the picture Raven had taken on Halloween. Raven had sent it to Abby the day after Halloween, she had completely forgotten about it until she went into her gallery to admire her latest photo for the Clexa scrapbook.

"It the first framed photo I have of you Lexa, it's going right up there on the shelf with the rest of the family photos."

Lexa can't stop the few tears that roll down her cheeks, she moves forward and hugs Abby.

 

* * *

 

One day Clarke and Lexa were sitting at opposite ends of the couch studying, Lexa had a book in one hand and a highlighter in the other, her legs were stretched across the couch, her feet almost touching Clarke's thigh, Clarke had her laptop on her lap typing away, her feet up on the coffee table.

They heard a thud at the door and Clarke got up to investigate the sound. When she opened the door she found Raven standing there with two ice cream cones in her hands. She gives one to Clarke and makes her way over to Lexa and hands her one too. "Don't say I never bought ye anything."

"Aww Rae you're too sweet."

"Whatever, me and O wanted ice cream anyway so it's not like I went out of my way to get it."

"You still thought of us, which is sweet."

"Fine, I'm a total sweetheart if you tell anyone I will destroy you."

"Your secret is safe with us."

"Ok I'm gonna go get mine from O before it melts or she eats it, enjoy your studying ladies."

They continued studying while they were eating their ice creams. Once she was done Clarke put her laptop on the table and walked over to the sink to wash off the ice cream that had dripped down her hand. 

When she sat back down on the couch she glanced at Lexa and noticed the mess she had made while eating her one. There was ice cream everywhere, on her chin, the tip of her nose, her bottom lip, the corner of her mouth, Clarke chuckled at the sight.

Lexa looked up from her book wondering why Clarke was chuckling. 

Clarke pulled out her phone and took a picture, she giggled again when she looked at it. 

Lexa raised her eyebrow and Clarke flipped her phone around to show her the photo. "You've got a little something there."

Lexa's eyes widen, she grabs her bag that was sitting next to her and searches through it until she finds the packet of tissues she was looking for, she pulls a few out of the packet and starts frantically wiping her face. When she's done she looks at Clarke silently asking if she got rid of it all.

Clarke shakes her head looking at the bit on her chin that she missed. "Here, let me." Clarke grabs one of the tissues. She places a leg on either side of Lexa's thighs and hovers over her, making sure she isn't actually on her.

Lexa looks at Clarke's position and wishes she could be closer, then scolds herself for thinking like that. She looks up at Clarke when she feels her hand gently raising her head.

Clarke gently wipes away the ice cream. Her movements become slower until a point where she completely stops and gazes into Lexa's eyes. 

Lexa feels a shift in the air, she's not entirely sure what's happening but right now Clarke, the incredibly beautiful, wonderful woman that has made her life so much better in a matter of weeks, is so close and still Lexa wants her closer. Her hands move to Clarke's hips.

Clarke's breath hitched when she felt Lexa's hands touch her hips. She lowered herself so that she was no longer hovering over Lexa but on her. 

Lexa watched as Clarke's gaze travelled down to her lips, Lexa started to lean in towards Clarke. 

Clarke's eyes fluttered shut when Lexa got closer.

Lexa slowly moved closer and closer until she heard a thud followed by two loud squeals.

Clarke opened her eyes and looked at Lexa who was staring at the door, Clarke followed her line of sight wondering what happened and then she saw it, there at the door stood Octavia and Raven with a smirk on both their faces, phones in their hands Ravens with the back facing them having just taken a photo of the two and Octavia's with the front facing them with a smirking Bellamy on the screen, Octavia and Raven had filled him in on what had been happening between the two when he had asked how Clarke was doing, he was just as excited as they were about Clarke opening herself up to the possibility of falling in love again.

"Bell?"

"Hey princess."

"Uh we wanted to introduce Lexa to Bell but we can come back later." Octavia started to back away from the door as she said it.

"No, no you can stay, I was just helping Lex get the ice cream off her face." Clarke finally got off of Lexa and walked over to take the phone from Octavia.

_'With your mouth?'_ Raven refrained from saying what she was thinking.

"Hi Bell, I miss you."

"I miss you too princess, I would ask what's new in your life but O and Rae have told me all about the amazing new friend you have."

Clarke blushed thinking about how the girls would've described this incident had they seen it before he called. "Yeah, she is amazing." Clarke looked over her shoulder and saw Lexa looking at her with a wide grin on her face. "Wanna meet her?"

"I thought you'd never ask."

Clarke makes her way back over to Lexa and sits down next to her, she faces the phone towards Lexa.

"Hi Lexa, I'm Bellamy, O's blood brother and non-blood brother to Clarke and Raven."

Lexa gives him a shy wave.

"I heard you've been taking good care of my sisters, thanks for looking out for them, I know they can take care of themselves but if you weren't there to protect Clarke I wouldn't have seen Finn fall on his ass."

Lexa looks confused, Raven notices this and decides to explain. "I sent him the video."

"Really Rae?" Clarke huffs.

"What? Everyone in the family hates that guy so I think it's important that everyone gets to see it."

"Speaking of family, I hear congratulations are in order." Bellamy speaks up, interrupting the argument that would have began if he hadn't.

"For?"

"Lexa is part of the family now."

Lexa smiles proudly.

"Just so you know it's very impressive to be accepted into the family so quickly, Finn never got to be a part of it despite trying for years but I'm not surprised you got in so easily after hearing everything about you from O and Rae it's no surprise that everyone adores you, I adore you and I haven't even met you in person yet." He gives her one of his charming smiles.

"She's not straight." Clarke blurts out, Bellamy smirked, Lexa raised an eyebrow and Clarke blushed.

"I'm not hitting on her princess besides I think she's more of a blonde hair, blue eyes type of girl, am I right Lexa?"

Without thinking about it Lexa nods.

Clarke blushes even more, her mouth hangs open slightly.

Bellamy notices how flustered Clarke is so he decides to change the subject.

They continued on talking for almost two hours, Bellamy had told them that he wouldn't be able to make it to thanksgiving because of work but he had made sure he would be free for Christmas and New Year's Eve.

 

* * *

 

When Abby asked Lexa if she wanted to spend thanksgiving with them she didn't know how to respond. She wanted to but she couldn't, it had been too long since she had seen her family. The other problem was that she didn't know how to explain that she had to go home.

Then she remembered the text she got that morning from her cousin asking if they could go running together while she's home for thanksgiving. She hands the phone over to Abby and she reads the message.

"Lexa has to go home for thanksgiving." She tells the three girls who were waiting for an answer. Abby turns back to Lexa and gives back her phone. "We'll miss you, I hope you have a great thanksgiving."

"It'll be the first time we spend more than a few hours apart." Raven points out.

Lexa holds Clarke's hand, like she knows that it upset her to find out that they would be separated for a few days. 

 

* * *

 

Raven and Octavia told Clarke and Lexa that they would give them some time alone before Lexa had to leave. 

They were sitting on the couch together, they sat in silence for twenty minutes, both of them wrapped up in their own thoughts.

Clarke finally breaks the silence, telling Lexa what she's thinking about. "I'm gonna miss you, you know?"

Lexa nodded and put her arm around Clarke, pulling her into her side.

Clarke put her head on Lexa's shoulder, she reached over to take Lexa's other hand, she pulled it over to her own lap and turned it over so that she could trace the lines on her palm.

"It'll be weird not seeing you everyday." Clarke sighs sadly. "It's going to suck."

Lexa grabs Clarke's hand and squeezes it, she smiles because Clarke thinks it's going to suck being apart for a few days and Lexa can't stop herself from feeling happy about that.

"You can call me, you know that right?"

Lexa gives her a questioning look.

"If you have any nightmares....or if....I don't know....if you just want to be together even if it's just on the phone....it's probably a stupid idea."

Lexa gets up from the couch and walks to her room.

Clarke's worries that she might have pushed Lexa too far until Lexa returns to her spot on the couch with her phone. She unlocks it and hands it over to Clarke.

Clarke smiles knowing what Lexa wants her to do. She creates a new contact on Lexa's phone, she adds her number and takes a photo of herself, she assigns the photo to her contact and hands it back to Lexa.

She gives her own phone to Lexa and she adds her number to Clarke's contact's before handing it back.

They cuddled up together again after that, both wanting to just be together for as long as possible. 

After a few minutes Clarke got up to make some coffee, she was about to ask if Lexa wanted some but stopped when she realized Lexa had fallen asleep.

She realized that if Lexa slept in the position she was in now she would wake up with a very sore neck. Clarke put one hand on Lexa's arm and the other on the side of her head, she gently guided Lexa down until her head was resting on the arm of the couch, she slowly pulled her hands away so that she could lift Lexa's legs up onto the couch.

She smiled seeing how peaceful Lexa looked now and then made her way back to her bedroom. She came back into the room a few minutes later with her sketchbook, charcoal and a cup of coffee.

She sat in the armchair and pulled her legs up onto the chair to rest her sketchbook against them while she drew.

 

* * *

 

Almost a full hour later she was still drawing, it usually didn't take her this long but she couldn't stop looking at Lexa and she was trying to make this drawing as detailed as she could.

Lexa started to shift around in her sleep, Clarke looked up but Lexa had stopped moving around so she figured she was alright but only a few seconds later she bolted up suddenly, fully awake and looking terrified. 

Clarke shoved her sketchbook and charcoal off of her lap and rushed to sit beside Lexa.

"Hey, it's okay." She places her hand on Lexa's thigh giving it a light squeeze. "You're okay."

"What were you dreaming about?" Clarke wasn't exactly asking Lexa this she was just thinking out loud.

Lexa knew that even if she could answer this she probably wouldn't because her dream had been about Clarke. She had heard the voices of the people that left her telling her that Clarke would find out why she didn't speak, then she would realize she didn't want to be Lexa's friend and she would leave her, just like they had.

Clarke could see the fear in Lexa's eyes, she felt an urgent need to make sure she knew that she was safe. "It was just a nightmare. 

Lexa spots something, she gets up from the couch and walks over to the armchair, she hesitates for a moment before she picks up the sketchbook.

Clarke moves towards Lexa and looks down at the drawing. "Oh um, that's not finished." Clarke bites her lip before looking up at Lexa with a small nervous smile showing, it's not the first time Lexa has seen a picture Clarke has drawn of her but Clarke knows that the amount of detail makes it obvious that she had been drawing her for a while and Lexa hadn't felt the drawing like she had with her other ones so Clarke thought that meant Lexa didn't like it but when she looks at Lexa she doesn't see any disgust or hatred, the way Lexa's looking at her right now makes Clarke think that she might close the distance between them and finally kiss her.

Lexa wants to kiss her, Lexa has never wanted anything as much as she wants this, Lexa was going to kiss her but she is stopped when the door opens revealing Raven and Octavia who have stopped them from kissing for the second time.

Clarke can see that Lexa is just as disappointed as she is by the interruption. She remembers to take the sketchbook from Lexa, she closes it so the other two girls wouldn't notice the drawing and puts it back on the chair, she knows that if Lexa noticed how much detail she had poured into the drawing then Octavia and Raven would too.

 

* * *

 

"If you don't text me I will text you every five seconds until you do." Raven warned as she handed back Lexa's phone.

Lexa smiled and held her arms out silently asking for a hug.

Raven was quick to embrace Lexa, she was sure she would miss Lexa but she wouldn't admit that.

"Drive slow and safe." Octavia stepped forward and hugged Lexa, then she stepped back so Clarke could say goodbye 

Clarke steps forward and holds Lexa's hands in her own. "Okay, just a few days apart, no big deal we can survive that. I'm going to call you and you can call me, we'll get through this and then we'll be together again."

"She's not moving to another country Clarke, she's just going home for a few days." 

"Doesn't mean I won't miss her." Clarke retorted looking over at Octavia before she turned back to Lexa. "I _will_ miss you."

Lexa removes her hands from Clarke's so that she can step closer and wrap her arms around Clarke, holding her close. The two girls break the hug when they hear sniffling.

"Bye baby, I'll see you in a few days." Octavia, Lexa and Clarke look at Raven who is attempting to hug Lexa's car.

"Okay Reyes, back away from the car, Lexa can't go anywhere while your blocking the door."

Raven does as Octavia told her to do and takes a few steps back. Lexa moves closer to the car, still holding one of Clarke's hands, rather than let go Clarke moved with her. She stood there looking between the handle of the car door and Clarke's hand in hers. 

Clarke realizes that Lexa has to go but she doesn't want to let go of her hand. Clarke thinks that Lexa is the most adorable person she has ever met, she removes her hand from Lexa's and hugs her again.

Eventually Clarke pulls back and opens the car door for Lexa. It takes a few more minutes of the two just looking at each other before Lexa gets into the car.

She rolls down the window and the three girls all say goodbye before Lexa pulls out of her parking space. They watch her drive to the exit of the parking lot where Lexa stops and checks to see if there are any cars driving past, she sticks her hand out the window waving at the girls again before she drives away.

"You alright Clarkey?"

"Yeah I'll be fine it's just a few days. You two won't be alright though."

"We'll be okay Griff, we'll see her soon."

"Not what I'm talking about, you two won't be alright because I'm going to murder you both."

"Whoa Griff we didn't make Lexa go, you can't kill us for that."

"That's not the reason." Clarke lets out a sigh. "Lexa was going to kiss me before you two interrupted us."

"What?!" Both girls shout in unison.

"I think she was....I don't know, it felt like she might." 

Both girls silently agree this is the time to find out how Clarke feels about Lexa. "Did you want her to kiss you?"

Clarke looks at her friends trying to work out if it's a good idea to tell them that she desperately wanted Lexa to kiss her. "Maybe...."

They knew that even just getting that answer was a big step for Clarke so they decided not to push her. 

"Just so you know Griff, I wouldn't be surprised if Lexa wanted to kiss you too." Raven smirked when Clarke tried to bite back a smile.

"Let's get packed up and then we can head off." Octavia linked her arms with Raven and Clarke's and lead them back towards the apartments.

 

* * *

 

When Clarke entered her apartment again it felt empty. She wanted to get packed and out of there as quickly as possible, it felt wrong being there knowing Lexa wasn't going to be there for a few days. 

She made her way to her bedroom but froze in the hallway when she spotted an envelope taped onto the door. She was scared, terrified really, Lexa was gone and had left a letter, she was afraid that Lexa had left the letter to tell Clarke that she wouldn't be coming back after thanksgiving.

She knew she was just being silly but she still checked Lexa's room to make sure she hadn't packed up all of her stuff and secretly moved out. She was relieved to see that everything was still there, she was positive this wasn't a goodbye forever letter so she carefully removed the tape and the letter from the door. 

She walked back to the couch and sat down. She carefully opened the envelope and took out the paper inside, she took a deep breath before she started to read it.

 

_Clarke,_

_I do trust you, above all else that is what I need you to know._

_I want to give you an explanation for why I don't speak but first I would really like to thank you for being so kind to me. There's not many people in this world that would go to great lengths to make me feel comfortable and included the way you, Octavia, Raven, Bellamy, Jasper, Monty, Abby and Marcus have. I am so happy to call you and them my friends._

_This letter is my way of telling you that I would like to start over with you after the holidays, I hope that I will be able to speak to you then because yes, I can speak, there are reasons why I don't I'll explain that next but I want you to know that I am trying to speak to you, for some reason I can't, every time I try the words just won't come out, I am working on fixing that though._

_To explain why I don't speak I need to tell you about my past._

_I thought my life was perfect, I had a great family, I was in love, I was happy but everything fell apart._

_Three years ago my dad died. He was on his way home from a business trip, the police said he stopped when the traffic light turned red, when he was supposed to drive again his car didn't move._

_There was a few cars waiting behind his, they kept honking their horns at him but he didn't move, the driver of the car that was right behind him got out of his car to find out what the problem was, when he looked into the car he saw that my dad was unconscious. He checked for a pulse but there was none, he called an ambulance then he pulled my dad out of the car and started CPR but by the time the ambulance got there it was too late._

_After my dad died my mother was never the same. She struggled to deal with his death and turned to alcohol to numb the pain._  

_In the early days I got glimpses of the real her and I thought that maybe she would be able to overcome it all but it only got worse. She would forget to pick me up from school, in the beginning I would wait a while thinking she might show up but after a few weeks I decided I wasn't going to wait around for her anymore so I would walk home instead._

_Then she lost her job and didn't seem too concerned about getting a new one, all my dad's money was left to me but I wasn't allowed to use it until I was eighteen so my uncle Gustus would make sure our bills were paid, he tried his best to look after me but my mother wouldn't let him visit us, I think it hurt her to see him because he looks a lot like my dad._

_My mother would disappear for days and I'd have no idea where she was. One day I was looking for some money to get groceries, I looked in her handbag, she had two purses in there, one only had a five dollar bill the other had a small bag of white powder, I didn't know about the drugs until then._

_I went straight to my uncle with it, I had never seen him look so angry, he told me to stay at their house that day while he went to find my mother. He told me the next day that my mother was going to go to rehab for a little while and that I would be staying with them while she was there. When we went back to my house to get some of my stuff there was a note left on my bed all it said was "I can't do this, sorry.". My mother was gone, she took what she needed and left before we got there._

_I moved into my uncle's house that day, I didn't speak much, there wasn't much to say really, I wasn't in a good place but there was still one person I thought would never leave me._

_Her name was Costia. We were together for almost two years. I thought we had a perfect relationship but looking back on it now I'm starting to realize that she wasn't as happy to be with me as I was with her._

_I met Costia in school, I was never very good at socializing, I was that quiet kid that would hide out in the library during lunch. Costia was there one day and she kept staring at me, I couldn't figure out why. Then she was sitting next to me, asking me to have lunch with her sometime and inviting me to her house to watch movies with her._

_She had two close friends Roan and Ontari, they were brother and sister. I started spending time with them when me and Costia started dating, Roan and I weren't exactly best friends but we respected each other, we fought a lot but we never lied to each other. I never liked Ontari, she was the type of person that would stab you in the back and feel no remorse for doing so._

_I think we had one good year before Costia stopped loving me, if she ever really did. I didn't notice any of the signs when we were together, she was rarely available to go on dates or just hang out, when I would text or call her I'd only get one word answers, she stopped coming to lunch so I would go to the library but instead of being alone Roan would be there with me._

_Costia left me two months after my mother disappeared. She told me she was dating Ontari, when I asked why she was doing this to me she said she was bored of listening to me whining about my "dead dad and junkie mother" she didn't stop there though, she had to make it even more painful by saying that my mother left because she didn't love me and that she was leaving for the same reason._

_Roan is fiercely loyal to his family, Ontari made him promise that he wouldn't tell me about them until Costia broke up with me, he had to go along with it but made it clear that if I ever asked him if Costia was cheating on me then he wouldn't lie to me._

_After Costia broke up with me he came to my house and told me everything, he told me that this hadn't started recently it had started a few months after my dad died, he also told me that the reason he was spending time in the library with me was because he didn't like what his sister and Costia were doing to me and he didn't want me to be alone._  

_He stopped having lunch with them and started spending it with me instead, some days we would go to the library other days we would sit out on the grass to just hang out and talk. I thought of Roan as a friend, he was my only friend but after a few weeks we had to stop spending time together, his mother, Nia, didn't want Roan hanging out with me because he "shouldn't be friends with someone that destroys the people closest to her", he was even nice enough to be honest about why we couldn't hang out together anymore, he could have just ignored me but he told me the truth and even told me that he was going to miss spending time with me._

_My parents, my only friend and the woman I loved were gone. It hurt Clarke, it really, really hurt. It made me think that there was something wrong with me, that I really did destroy the people I love._

_Then I started to think that I couldn't trust anyone so I shut down, I just stopped speaking, I thought if I distanced myself from everyone then it wouldn't hurt so much when they left._

_The only people I really spoke to were my cousins Anya and Lincoln, they refused to be shut out of my life. I'm glad they did, it was hard enough not speaking to my aunt and my uncle._

_Indra and Gus did try to get me talking again but eventually they realized that I would only speak when I was ready to._  

_It was two years before I spoke to them again._

_Everything started to change during the summer. My teacher from Polis University, where I was studying last year, came to my apartment and he told me he spoke to a friend working at Arkadia University who managed to secure a spot for me here and him and his wife, Alie, would be paying my college fees. They trusted me enough to invest their money in my education._

_He told me that my aunt and uncle would be paying for my accommodation, I knew why they wanted to do that, they knew I wouldn't use my dad's money, I would've worked to pay the bill's and they didn't want me to have to split my time between work and studying. They've only ever wanted good things for me, I realized then that I had no reason not to trust them and I never really did, it was wrong of me to cut them out of my life, I was just so worried that they would leave me too but I know they would never do that._

_So I was speaking to my family, the only person I had as a friend was out of my life, I was okay with not having friends but then I met you._

_One thing I should tell you is that before I moved in here I had planned on spending the year locked in my bedroom and just surviving through this year, my last roommates were not as understanding as you are, they would call me names because I wouldn't speak to them and they did know my reasons for not speaking, Anya had explained it to them._

_I was standing outside our apartment door, Octavia and Raven found me and introduced themselves, they told me it was alright, that I didn't have to speak, they just wanted to help me move in. I knew that you were different than my last roommates before I even met you because of how incredible your friends were._

_Then I met you and you were even more amazing than I ever could have imagined you would be. You understand me in a way that no one else ever could, you always make sure I feel comfortable, you keep me safe at night, I'm always happy when I'm with you. You are so important to me Clarke._

_In two years I didn't meet anyone that I wanted to talk to but within the first few days of knowing you I desperately wanted to speak to you._

_You told me at the Halloween party that I fixed you and though I couldn't say it then I do want you to know that you fixed me too, I was scared to let anyone near my heart too but you, my family and your family have shown me that it is safe to trust all of you._

_Alie is one of the best psychologists in the country and I've been talking to her every Saturday for a couple of months now, she told me that she thinks we've made a lot of progress, we're going to talk about it again while I'm back in Polis and she thinks I'll be able to speak to you when I come back after thanksgiving._

_If it's alright with you I'd like you to be the only one to know about this right now, I am going to talk to everyone soon but I'd like to speak to you first. I do understand if you don't feel right keeping this secret then of course you should tell someone._

_I hope you have a great thanksgiving Clarke, I'll see you in a few days._

_Lexa._

 

Clarke didn't know when she had started crying, she had already guessed that Lexa had a hard time before they met her but she didn't know she had gone through so much.

She read the letter four more times to make sure she hadn't missed anything in it. She found herself running her finger over the words just like Lexa would do with her artwork. She couldn't imagine how difficult it must have been for Lexa to write this.

She completely understood why Lexa would have trust issues and she was so glad that Lexa trusted her, she vowed to never walk away from Lexa even if they had a huge fight.

She put the letter back in the envelope and put it inside her sketchbook to keep it safe. She started packing for her few days at home.

 

* * *

 

Lexa had been staring the ceiling for just over half an hour trying to get to sleep. She couldn't figure out what was wrong, she was exhausted, she should have fallen asleep when her head hit the pillow.

**Clarke (00:12)**  
**Goodnight Lexa.**

Lexa rubs her hand flat along the empty space beside her in the bed. She missed having Clarke there beside her, she missed her soft breathing that would lull Lexa to sleep, she missed having Clarke's arms wrapped around her protectively, she even missed Clarke's sleep talking, speaking about things ranging from sock puppets on grand adventures to saving the popes life by using the air ducts, her favourite thing Clarke had said so far was "Octopus, what kind of nutcracker are you?", one of her strangest dreams so far, Lexa loved listening to her.

She let out a loud yawn.

**Lexa (00:14)**  
**Goodnight Clarke, sweet dreams.**  

She fell asleep right after she sent the message.

 

* * *

 

 

At three a.m. while Lexa was wiping away the tears that had been streaming down her face she got a call from Clarke telling her that she was okay and that she was safe. She didn't end the call until she heard Clarke mumbling and realized that Clarke had fallen asleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Clarke's sleep talking quote is something my friend did actually say while she was sleeping so I thought i'd share that with you.


	8. Thanksgiving

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> -Thansgiving  
> -Jaha's history  
> -Texts  
> -A whole lot of talking about feelings  
> -Nosy Anya

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm so so so sorry this took so long, lifes a bit shit at the moment but I promise I'm not giving up on this story, writing this is the best distraction.

Lexa was woken up the next morning by the sound of knocking on her bedroom door.

"Lex, get your ass in gear I've been waiting for over an hour."

"I don't want to get up yet." Lexa whined.

Lincoln pushes her bedroom door open and walks over to the window. He pulls the curtains open and turns to face Lexa who is using her arm to shield her eyes from the light.

"Come on Lex, I'll buy you breakfast if you get up now."

Lexa didn't want to get up, she missed Clarke and she was hoping she could sleep for most of the day so that time would pass by quickly and she wouldn't have to think about how she wouldn't see Clarke until Sunday. She knew her plan wouldn't work. "Fine." Lexa huffs and reluctantly gets out of bed.

"Downstairs in ten minutes."

 

* * *

 

After an hour long run, a quick shower and a short drive Lexa and Lincoln sat down at the dropship diner that was close to their house.

"You know this doesn't count as buying me breakfast, right?"

"Well I think it does."

"I hope this isn't where you take your dates for breakfast." Lexa gave him the same look she would give to Octavia and Raven to get them to wash the dishes.

Lincoln looks down at the table, hiding the guilty look on his face.

"Oh Linc." Lexa shakes her head.

"What? The money I don't spend here can be used to pay for better dates for them."

"It better be, Indra and Gus taught you to be a gentleman."

"I know, I promise I always do my best to be kind and courteous with my lady friends."

"Lady friends? Really?" Lexa chuckled. "I think you might be too much of a gentleman."

Lincoln shrugged, he didn't mind being called too nice. "How's it going with your lady friend?"

"My lady friend?"

"Yeah, Clarke."

"Clarke is a lady and my friend but we're not dating."

"I didn't say you were but if you were to date someone Clarke does sound like the perfect girl for you."

"Yeah?" Lexa bit her bottom lip to prevent a smile from showing.

"Definitely."

Lexa tried her very best not to let her huge smile show but she just couldn't hold it back anymore. Lincoln smiled too, he wanted Lexa to have someone who could love her just as much as she would love them and from what Lexa had told him Clarke was definitely the person who could do that.

Lincoln didn't want to pry into her life too much so he just let Lexa tell him what she wanted to after that. He was delighted when Lexa told him that she would like to introduce him to Clarke, Octavia and Raven and asked him if he would come visit her in Arkadia, he told her that he would, he missed his cousin, she was his family but also his best friend and he really missed hanging out with her but they made up for that by spending the whole day hanging out together. Lexa was a little disappointed that she didn't get to see Anya because she missed her as much as she missed Lincoln but she was so happy that she got to spend time with him.

 

* * *

 

_Thanksgiving day_

 

Lexa groggily made her way to the kitchen following the sound of Anya's voice.

"No, no we only have a few weeks I need it to be ready when we get there." Anya spots Lexa and mouths 'hi' to her before exiting through the patio door to speak to the caller privately.

"What's all that about?"

Lincoln freezes holding his spoon just below his chin. "Um...work stuff?" He nods his head deciding it's a good answer. "Yeah work stuff." He raises his spoon up to his mouth to continue eating his cereal.

Lexa looks at him suspiciously.

Lincoln keeps his gaze focused on his cereal.

Lexa looks at the patio door and sees Anya looking at her through the glass door and smirking, she had a mischievous look in her eyes and Lexa knew it was never good when Anya looked at someone the way she was looking at her now. She watched as Anya ended the call, slipped her phone back into the pocket of her jeans and walked back into the kitchen.

"Sorry about that Lex." Anya wrapped her arms around her cousin.

"Everything okay?" Lexa asked her words laced with concern.

"Yeah, everything's fine." She pulled back from Lexa to look at her. "You look good, happy, well-rested...." She tugged lightly on the oversized t-shift Lexa was wearing before she continued "comfortable."

Lexa looked down at the t-shirt and gulped, she scolded herself for forgetting to change before coming downstairs. She had maybe, kind of stolen it because it's Clarke's shirt and it still has the smell of her perfume on it.

"I've never seen this shirt Lex, it doesn't look new, where did you get it?" Anya asked with an innocent expression on her face.

Lexa tried hard to keep her expression stoic but the panic she felt showed before she could stop it. "I...uh...I got it in a thrift store." 

"Umhmm." Anya turns to Lincoln. "Hey Linc, when's the last time you saw _Heda_ so flustered?"

"I don't know what you're talking about Anya, she looks calm to me."

Lexa flashes a thankful look at him for helping her.

"Someday you'll come to the dark side Linc."

"Never gonna happen sis."

Anya turns back to Lexa. "How's school?"

"Great, it's not as difficult as I thought it would be."

"Nice campus?"

"It's gorgeous."

"You like your apartment?"

"It's great."

"And your roommate?"

"Clarke is extraordinary."

Anya smirked. " _Clarke_ huh?"

Lincoln sighed loudly and shook his head. "You make it so hard to protect you sometimes Lexa."

"Got something you want to tell me about this Clarke, little Lexie?"

Lexa tensed for a second and glared at Anya.

"Let's get started." Gustus announced, walking into the kitchen and stopping Anya's interrogation.

"We'll talk more about this later." Anya whispered so only Lexa could hear her.

 

* * *

 

The Jaha's arrived not long after Lexa had changed her clothes.

She had been banned from the kitchen for stealing food while they were cooking when she went back downstairs so she got to greet the Jaha's first. Lexa let them both in and hugged them.

"You're looking great Lexa, they're treating you well in Arkadia?" Alie asked with a smile.

"Umhmm, oh I met Marcus."

"I think that meeting was inevitable considering he's one of your teachers." Thelonius chuckled.

"Oh no I mean I met him outside of school, at Clarke's mom's house."

"Really? What was he doing there?" Thelonious frowned slightly.

"He's dating Clarke's mom."

"Clarke your roommate is Clarke Griffin?"

"Uh, yes?" Lexa asked, confused about that question.

"Wow small world." Alie said barely above a whisper.

"Yeah." Thelonious spoke in the same quiet tone as Alie had.

Lexa was confused this. "Have you met Abby and Clarke?"

"Yes, you know about my son Well?"

Lexa recalled Thelonious telling her about his son and his wife that passed away after a van hit their car on the drive home from school twelve years ago.

"Yes." Lexa said solemnly.

"Before he passed away he used to spent half the summer in Arkadia with his grandparents. Their neighbours were the Griffins, Clarke and Wells were inseparable after they met."

"Oh."

"They met when they were two. Abby and Jake used to send us letters when Wells would come back to Polis to let us know how Clarke was doing and we did the same. The last time I saw them was at Jake's funeral, Clarke was only sixteen at the time. Marcus told us about a year and a half ago that he was dating Abby but we never thought your roommate was Clarke Griffin."

"Whoa that's...." Lexa had no way to finish, she didn't know what could be said about it.

"Yeah."

They all stayed silent for a moment after that.

"I'm glad you and Clarke found each other. I couldn't imagine a better friend for you than Clarke and she's lucky to have a friend as wonderful you." Thelonious told her with a fond smile.

Lexa was going to respond when Indra appeared and greeted the Jaha's before launching into a long conversation with Thelonious.

Alie took that as their cue to go have their talk. "Alright Lexa where are we doing this?"

Lexa looks at the outfit Alie was wearing, instead of a dress she was wearing a red sweater and black pants, instead of her usual high heels she was wearing running shoes. "Are you sure you want me to pick the place?"

"Yeah, this is important so it should be in a place you feel relaxed."

"Okay tell me if you change your mind though."

"I will. So where are we off to?"

"The backyard."

"Lead the way."

After a few greetings from and for Alie, Lexa led them out back. Alie wasn't very worried when they walked into the backyard but when they reached the bottom of a large oak tree she realized why Lexa had thought she would change her mind. "Up there?"

"Is that okay?" Lexa asked nervously.

"It's great but it's been a long time since I climbed a tree so I'll probably need your help."

"We'll climb up on top of the tool shed it's easier to get up that way."

Lexa entered the tool shed and came back out carrying a small ladder, she placed it against the shed making it easier for them to get up. After only a few minutes Alie and Lexa had reached the spot in the tree where Lexa would perch when she needed to have some time alone. The trunk of the tree split into a v-shape, that was one of the safest places to sit in this tree Lexa told Alie to sit there while she sat on one of the thick branches.

"Alright Lexa, let's talk."

 

* * *

 

Octavia walked into Clarke's room expecting to find Clarke sprawled out on her bed or drawing something but when she entered the room she was surprised to find it empty. Something next to Clarke's bed caught her attention, she moved closer and discovered it was an incredibly detailed drawing of Lexa sleeping. She sat down on the bed and examined the drawing before she pulled out her phone and called Clarke.

"Hey, where are you?"

"Just went out for a walk, needed to clear my head."

Octavia hesitated before speaking. "Missing Lexa?"

Octavia heard Clarke sigh sadly. "Yeah."

Clarke didn't elaborate any further on how she was feeling so Octavia decided to let her have the time she needed to think. "Call me if you need me, okay?"

"Okay, I'll be back soon." 

Octavia ended the call and whistled loudly when she heard Raven and Abby talking not far from Clarke's room. "Get in here."

"Where are you O?" Raven called out.

"Clarke's room."

"What's up?"

"Look what I found propped up next to Clarke's bed."

"No way." Raven smirked.

"It's just like a photo." Abby smiled proudly while she examined the drawing. "Where is she?"

"She went for a walk, she misses Lexa."

Raven pondered something for a moment. "We should call Lexa soon."

Abby hums her agreement. "Might help Clarke feel closer to her."

 

* * *

 

Clarke was nearing the end of her walk. She had woken up with an ache in her heart, her arms were wrapped around one of her pillows and she couldn't smell Lexa's shampoo like she usually did every morning. It was the first time in weeks that she hadn't woken up next to Lexa, she didn't expect it to hit her as hard as it did. 

Lexa had quickly become very important to her, so important that a few hours away from her felt like an eternity, she had no idea how she was going to get through the next few days without her. 

If it were anyone else it would have terrified her to be this attached so soon but she trusted Lexa, she knew Lexa would never intentionally hurt her and she would never betray her like Finn had so she didn't worry about letting Lexa get close to her, she never felt like she needed to distance herself from Lexa to protect her heart it was the complete opposite she wanted to spend all her time with Lexa, she wanted to tell Lexa absolutely everything there was to know about her and she wanted to know everything about Lexa too. 

Being so far from Lexa was hurting her heart so much she was sure it would break soon. She had gone for a walk to stop herself from doing something crazy like driving to Polis to be with Lexa but it wasn't working she still couldn't stop the urge to just leave and find her.

 

* * *

 

"What do you think?" Lexa asked after spilling her thoughts for Alie to analyse.

"I think that you believe once you speak to them they'll leave but I think you know deep down that they won't. I also think you're afraid they won't like you when you speak but they already like you when you don't speak so I know that they will only like you more when you do."

"You really think they will?" 

"Of course, from what you've told me they seem like terrific people, I'm positive that they really do like you. I don't know if you realize this Lexa but you are actually a great person to talk to." Alie informed her.

"Really?" Lexa asked shyly.

"Yes. You have very interesting things to say Lexa, you should never consider your thoughts to be any less interesting than anyone else's."

Lexa let out a breath of relief.

"Now tell me more about Clarke?"

Lexa blushed. "Why Clarke specifically?"

"She's the one you seem most intent on talking too, you admitted that you could probably talk to the others but it's Clarke you struggle with and Clarke is the one you want to talk to first, she's important to you."

Lexa did tell her everything. She told Alie about how breathtakingly beautiful Clarke is. How she makes Lexa feel like she is the most important person on earth . How her eyes are more beautiful than the sky. How she protects her at night from everything that hurts her. How her smile makes Lexa feel better no matter how she's feeling.

Alie beamed at Lexa while she continued to list every little detail she could think of about Clarke. "You miss her." It wasn't a question and Lexa didn't deny it because it was the truth.

Lexa sighed. "I do. It's hard being so far from her...she sleeps in my bed, did I tell you that?"

"You did mention that."

"She's helping with the nightmares." Lexa stopped to think for a moment. "I spend everyday with her. I wake up next to her, I have all my meals with her, I go to bed with her, I rarely spend more than a few hours away from her. Most people would need the time apart but I don't, I just need Clarke...I mean uh," Lexa took a minute to breath and think about what she was saying. "I knew it would be hard being away from her but I really didn't expect it to be this painful."

"You're closer to her than you are to the others?"

"The others are really great but Clarke....Clarke is unique."

"You're falling for her." Again it wasn't a question but a statement.

"What?! No I'm not, we haven't known each other for very long." Lexa sighed again, she had gotten defensive but she realized that she didn't need or want to lie to Alie. "I am. I'm falling for Clarke." She let out a shaky breath, it was the first time she had said that out loud but she had thought about it many, many times over the last few weeks.

 

* * *

 

After Lexa and Alie were finished talking they walked into the kitchen to find Anya attempting to grab a phone from Lincoln, he had the phone in one of his hands which was raised up in the air above both of them. 

"Lexa, someone's calling you, this one tried to answer so I took your phone." He informed her when he realized she was watching them.

"No I didn't, I was going to bring it to you." Anya feigned innocence but Lexa saw right through it.

She rolled her eyes at her cousin. "Sure you were Anya."

Lexa took the phone from Lincoln and exited the kitchen she hit the answer button once she was sitting in the armchair.

"Good morning Lexa." Clarke's voice sing-songed.

"Mornin' Commander." Octavia greeted cheerfully.

"Happy turkey day Woods." Raven practically yelled, clearly excited about the thanksgiving feast they would be having later on.

"Hey Lexa, happy thanksgiving." Lexa could hear the smile in Abby's voice. 

"You're on loud speaker." Clarke stated, Lexa couldn't stop the wide smile that had appeared on her face but she didn't want to either, she was so glad to hear Clarke's beautiful, raspy voice. "We're cooking."

"Well me and Clarke are cooking, Octavia and Raven are stealing our ingredients."

"We're hungry." Raven whines.

"You just had breakfast." Abby said in scolding manner.

"I'm a growing girl I need a lot of food."

"You've grown enough Raven." 

"Based on my calculations if you would allow me to eat as much as I want I could grow at least another two inches."

"And listen to you brag about how much taller you are than me and Clarkey? I don't think that would be smart." Octavia argued.

"Lexa's taller than all of us and she doesn't brag about it, why do you think I would?"

"Because Lexa doesn't feel the need to make a big show and dance about it whereas you would continuously ask us if we needed you to reach the top shelf." Clarke pointed out.

"Not all the time, just sometimes." Raven grumbled.

"Lexa, this is why we don't feed Raven outside of the allotted meal times." Clarke warned her.

"Don't listen to them Woods."

"You can feed me anytime you want Lex, I won't grow anymore." Lexa then heard Octavia mutter 'unfortunately' and she felt the need to comfort her but she couldn't.

"You may be shorter than some people O but you are one of the strongest people I know. A lot of people are tall but there's not many people that could get in a fight with a man that weighs three times the amount you do and still come out of it as the winner." 

"Thanks Clarkey, you always know how to make me feel better about myself."

They then told Lexa about the day a middle aged man tried to grab Raven's ass while they were shopping one day, Octavia grabbed his wrist before he could and flipped him with so much force that he flew over a display shelf and landed face first into the tiled floor, when he got up his face was covered in blood and he ran from the store. The manager of the store then gave Octavia a gift voucher for getting rid of the creep.

 

* * *

 

Lexa jumped when a figure appeared in front of her. Anya was stood there with her hands crossed in front of her and a mischievous look on her face.

"Is it Clarke?" Anya watched as Lexa's eyes widened comically.

Lexa slowly got up from the armchair and started moving away from her cousin.

"Oh it's totally Clarke, you can't hide her from me anymore, hand over the phone Lex."

There was complete silence from everyone on Clarke's side of the call.

"Anya leave her alone." Lincoln's voice boomed as he entered the room and stood between Lexa and Anya.

"Why does Lincoln get to know about her but I don't?"

"Because I don't demand to know."

"Does Clarke know about you sleeping in her shirt?" Anya practically shouts.

Lexa glared at Anya.

"Shit sorry Lexa I didn't mean to say that so loud."

Lexa stepped forward.

"No heda—" Anya screamed as she started running. "Don't kill me!"

Lexa gave her phone to Lincoln, she could only focus on killing her cousin now.

Lincoln hesitated before moving the phone up to his ear. "Um hi, Lexa can't speak right now she has to murder Anya."

Lincoln heard a group of women laughing.

"I don't envy Anya." Raven chuckled.

"Yeah, if Lexa can make a man ruin his underwear with one look I dread to think what she can do when she gets physical."

" _Mom._ " Clarke whined.

"She's not wrong Lexa is a force to be reckoned with, I should know I trained her myself." Lincoln stated proudly.

"So who are you?" Octavia asked.

"Me? I'm Lincoln, Lexa's cousin and Anya's brother."

"You've got a nice voice Lincoln." Octavia cooed.

"Thank you, you do too. So I'm guessing this is Clarke, Raven and Octavia I'm speaking to?"

"Yeah and my mom Abby."

"It's nice speaking to you all."

"You too, so....you know about us?"

"Yes, you're very important to Lexa. She's not only my family, she's my best friend. I miss her but being in Arkadia and meeting all of you has made her life even better, she deserves happiness and you've given her that, she even text me once just saying that she was so happy, I will always be grateful for everything you've done for her."

"Aww that's so nice." Octavia stated.

"Wow the woods family really knows how to make us feel special." Raven added.

"Were you and Lexa taught to be so charming or does it just come naturally?" Clarke asked.

Lincoln chuckled. "A little of both, Lexa's far more charming than I am though. In fact, just yesterday she was reminding me to always be a gentleman. She's the type of person that doesn't know when they're being charming."

"She's cute and thoughtful too." Clarke blurts out.

Lincoln smiled realizing it was Clarke that said that.

"So Lex is just a big ol' softy huh?" Octavia asked clearly amused by this conversation.

"Lexa is definitely a big ol' softy but when someone messes with the people she cares about she can be terrifying. You'll see that side of her if anyone ever hurts any of you."

"Oh we've already seen that side of her when my ex was being a jackass." Clarke told him.

Lincoln watched Anya swing the front door open and start running down the driveway. Lexa soon followed, stopping at the end of the driveway to see which direction Anya had gone. "Speaking of her violent side I should probably stop her now before she chases my sister out of the state." Lincoln heard them all laugh again. "It was really nice speaking to you all."

"It was great speaking to you too Lincoln. I hope you and your family have a great thanksgiving." Abby said.

"I hope all of you do too."

"Bye Lincoln." He heard them all say.

"Bye." When the call ended Lincoln couldn't understand what had just happened, usually he was good at avoiding questions about Lexa but he had just willingly answered questions about her for people he had never met. He decided to forget about it because he really did have to intervene in the fight, he made his way down the street and started running towards Lexa and Anya who were now wrestling on someone's lawn.

 

* * *

 

"What's that smile for?" Abby asks noticing how happy Clarke looks. 

"She sleeps in my shirt." Clarke states dreamily, happy that she's not the only one hating the distance between them.

"Yeah I'm helping her get over the embarrassment of that." Raven enters the room still looking at her phone.

"How?" Clarke asked warily.

"I sent her a picture of the drawing next to Griff's bed."

"I'm going to kill you Raven."

Raven gulped watching Clarke stand from her seat. "Protect me O."

"I've got your back." Octavia stands up and grabs Clarke holding her tightly while Clarke tries her best to escape.

Clarke's phone vibrates on the table indicating that she has a new message, everyone looks at it and Octavia releases Clarke so she can get her phone.

**Lexa (13:41)**  
**In case it wasn't obvious, I miss you Clarke.**

Clarke had a big goofy smile on her face while she read the message.

**Lexa (13:42)**  
**Also I'm sorry I took your shirt, I just knew I'd miss you so I wanted to have something of yours with me.**

Raven snaps a photo of Clarke while she's reading them and sends it to Lexa.

**Lexa (13:44)**  
**You look beautiful.**

Clarke looks around the room confused by Lexa's message, she spots Raven with her phone pointed at her.

"Put the phone down or I _will_ kill you Raven."

"Alright, calm down, I just wanted Woods to see how good you look."

Clarke rolls her eyes at her friend and looks back at her phone.

**Clarke (13:46)**  
**Obviously I miss you too, I'm glad you have my shirt and you always look beautiful so I know you do too.**

**Lexa (13:47)**  
**Are you sure about that?**

With that message is a selfie Lexa took with her eyes crossed and her tongue sticking out the side of her mouth with a baseball cap sideways on her head.

Clarke snorted loudly while looking at it causing everyone to look at her with amused looks on their faces, Clarke blushed and covered her nose with her hand.

"What did she say?"

Clarke passes the phone to her mom, she reads the messages and chuckles. When everyone else wants to see she tells her to pass it along. When they've all seen it Clarke replies to Lexa.

**Clarke (13:49)**  
**You're cute, how's your thanksgiving been so far?**

 

* * *

 

"She say something nice?" Lincoln asks when he notices Lexa blushing.

"She said I'm cute."

"That's because you're wearing my hat, everyone looks cute in my hat." He takes it off her head and puts it back on his own. "See?"

Lexa punches his arm.

"I'm just kidding."

**Lexa (13:51)**  
**It's been good, I'm happy to see everyone again, well maybe not Anya.**

**Clarke (13:52)**  
**You love her really though.**

**Lexa (13:52)**  
**Fine, she's not entirely bad, just nosy. How's yours been?**

**Clarke (13:53)**  
**Good, apart from Raven's betrayal, we all miss you here.**

**Lexa (13:53)**  
**I miss you all too.**

**Clarke (13:54)**  
**Just a few more days and we'll be reunited.**

**Lexa (13:55)**  
**About that, are you alright with what's going to happen when I come back?**

**Clarke (13:56)**  
**I'm a little nervous but like a good nervous.**

**Lexa (13:56)**  
**Me too.**

**Clarke (13:57)**  
**Have you had your talk with Alie yet?**

**Lexa (13:58)**  
**I did it went really well Clarke, I know I'm ready now.**

**Clarke (13:59)**  
**That's great Lex, I'm really proud of you, you're so strong and incredibly brave for delving into the painful parts of your past.**

Clarke's words warmed Lexa's heart, even when they were miles apart Clarke had Lexa falling harder for her.

**Lexa (14:01)**  
**Thanks Clarke, I don't think I'd be strong enough or brave enough to do this if I didn't have you in my life.**

**Clarke (14:02)**  
**Wow, I sound amazing when you put it like that.**

**Lexa (14:03)**  
**You are pretty amazing.**

**Clarke (14:04)**  
**Pretty AND amazing or just pretty amazing?**

Lexa giggled which surprised her, she couldn't remember the last time she giggled or if she ever had.

**Lexa (14:04)**  
**Pretty AND amazing of course.**

**Clarke (14:05)**  
**You're equally as charming through texts as you are through gestures and looks.**

 

* * *

 

Octavia clears her throat loudly while standing up and moving to the opposite side of the table away from Clarke. "Everyone listen up, after looking over Clarke's shoulder I've discovered that Clarke and Lexa are flirting."

"O!!! We're not flirting we're just talking."

"Oh yeah? Read that message you just got."

**Lexa (14:07)**  
**It's not very difficult to compliment someone as incredible as you.**

Clarke blushed.

"See? Flirting."

"Octavia...." She warned.

"Do you want Lexa to flirt with you?"

"Mom!!!"

"What? It's a reasonable question honey."

"And it's one that you should answer because we're family and you're supposed to tell your family everything." Raven adds.

"I wouldn't hate it if she did." Clarke grumbles.

Octavia and Raven squeal in delight, Abby grins.

"Now you've got the information you wanted, let me text Lexa without any further interruptions."

**Clarke (14:12)**  
**Sweet talker.**

**Lexa (14:13)  
**Nope truth teller.****

 

* * *

 

When Clarke told Lexa that she wouldn't be able to text Lexa for a while because she had to help with the cooking Lexa decided she should go into the kitchen and spend some time with her family. When she entered the room she smiled at the sight in front of her Indra and Thelonious stood together chopping vegetables and talking animatedly while Gustus and Alie were laughing at something Lincoln was telling them on the opposite side of the kitchen, she was so happy to see the Jaha's getting along so well with the family.

Anya snuck up next to Lexa and put her arm around Lexa's shoulder. "It's nice, isn't it?"

"Hmm?" 

"Our family, everyone's happy."

"Yeah we've got some great people in our lives." Lexa couldn't believe how lucky she was to have such a wonderful family.

"Are you ever going to tell me about your life?"

"I will, I'm just not ready to yet."

"Okay, you know I'm here for you if you need anything though right?"

"Yeah I do, thanks." Lexa squeezed her cousin's hand that was on her shoulder.

"I really am sorry about the shirt incident."

"It's okay, you did no harm really."

 

* * *

 

"I'm thankful for all of you. We may not be related by blood but this is our family, we are so glad that Lexa came into our lives and that we got to meet all of you wonderful people." When Thelonious finished speaking Alie and him smiled fondly at Lexa who gave them the same smile.

"Your turn Lex." Anya nudged her shoulder.

"Okay." Lexa cleared her throat. "I'm thankful for my people. I have a family that stuck by me when times were tough not many people have that. Without all of you I wouldn't have this great life. I have so many people that I care about both present and absent." A flash of sadness crossed everyones faces, they all thought she was speaking about her parents which she was but she was also talking about Clarke, Raven, Octavia, Abby and Marcus. "I really don't know how I got so lucky."

 

* * *

 

"Lexa, I'm so so thankful that Lexa came into our lives. We are so lucky to have met her. It's impossible to describe how wonderful she is. When Lexa's around I'm always so happy, she makes me feel like I matter, like I'm important. No one can make me feel as good as Lexa does." Clarke blushed when saw the knowing looks she was getting from her family.

"Your turn Rae." Clarke tried to get the attention off of her.

"Woods and food." Raven simply states.

"Same here." Octavia says once Raven finished.

"Well I'm not sure how I'll follow Raven and Octavia, theirs were so beautiful." Raven and Octavia both stuck their tongues out at Marcus, he chuckled and mimicked the gesture. "I'm thankful for all of you and of course Lexa."

Raven and Octavia applauded him. "Cue the tears." Raven said sarcastically. 

"At least mine was more than three words."

Octavia shrugged. "Short and sweet, just like us."

"Hey!!! Speak for yourself, I am average height." Raven argued.

Abby interrupted them before an argument could start. "I'm thankful that we're all healthy and happy, I'm also thankful that we have a new family member, Lexa really is a great addition to our little tribe."

 

* * *

 

Clarke and Abby were as usual the last ones awake, Marcus had gone to bed an hour before, Octavia and Raven were both passed out on the couch in what looked to be a very uncomfortable position, Octavia's foot was on Ravens back while half of Raven's body was slumped over the side of the couch. Clarke and Abby were watching Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory.

"Wow." Clarke said just above a whisper.

"What's that wow for?" Abby furrowed her brow in confusion.

"I told Lexa we're watching this and she told me that Gene Wilder agreed to be Willy Wonka on one condition."

"What was it?"

"That his character would make a wildly grand entrance. He planned out every single move he made during that scene, even the part with his cane getting stuck in the cobblestones. When he was asked why he wanted to do the part with the cane and the somersault he said "because from that time on, no one will know if I'm lying or telling the truth."."

Abby chuckled. "That's brilliant. How did Lexa know that?"

"Gene Wilder is one of her favourite actors."

Abby smiles. "You're learning a lot about her today."

"Yeah, she's just as fun to talk to as I thought she would be."

Abby remained silent for a while wondering if she should push Clarke any further than she already had on the subject of her relationship with Lexa. "She's special, I knew that the first time you came here for dinner after she moved in, you had that dreamy look on your face and your smile was bigger than it ever had been before. You do that a lot more often now. I'm glad you found someone that can make you this happy."

Clarke tore her focus away from her phone as her mother spoke, listening to every word of what she was saying. "She has a way of looking at you, you know? It's like you matter, like you're the most important person in her life and when she looks at me like that and smiles so beautifully, it just makes me feel so special."

"You know she only looks at you like that Clarke."

"What do you mean?"

"The way she looks at us is different, she does look at us like we're important to her but when she looks at you it's more than that. She looks at you like you're too amazing to be from earth, she looks at you like you're her whole world, she looks at you the way me and Jake used to look at each other and you look at Lexa the same way." Abby didn't realize that this conversation would turn to the subject of Jake but it was the only way to make Clarke understand what she was saying. "Jake really would have loved her and he would have loved to see her looking at you the way she does."

"It's impossible not to love her." Clarke mumbled, low enough that she thought her mother wouldn't hear it but she did.

"Your dad always said that we'd know when you met your soulmate, he never explained how we would know he said we just would and he was right." Abby smiled fondly remembering how goofy Clarke was after meeting Lexa, she still was, even just getting texts from Lexa was making her daughter happy. "Lexa is your soulmate and you are hers, I know that is true."

 

* * *

 

When the movie ended Abby realized that Clarke's attention had been completely focused on her phone throughout the majority of it. "Clarke?"

"Yeah?"

"How do you feel about going back to your apartment tomorrow?"

Clarke looked up from her phone and frowned. "I thought we were staying until Sunday?"

"Raven and Octavia are but you might want to go back tomorrow."

"Why?"

"Raven told me Lexa's back tomorrow, you two could have some time alone, you're all coming here for dinner on Sunday anyway." Abby explained.

"You wouldn't mind?"

"Not at all, it's obvious you miss her Clarke. I was going to ask her to stay here with us but I really think some time alone would be good for you two."

Clarke beamed. "Thanks mom."

"No problem honey, now text her and tell her the good news. I'm going to go to bed." Abby hugged her daughter. "Goodnight "

"Goodnight mom."

**Clarke (00:32)**   
**I heard someone's coming home tomorrow.**

**Lexa (00:33)**   
**Indeed I am.**

**Clarke (00:34)**   
**I thought you were going to stay until Saturday, is everything ok?**

**Lexa (00:35)**   
**Yeah, I was but everyone is busy or working so there's not really a reason to stay.**

Unbeknownst to Lexa none of them were really busy except for Anya who still had a long list of calls to make. While Lexa had been on the phone to Clarke, Alie had informed everyone that they should act like they are busy tomorrow so that Lexa could go back to Arkadia early. When she was asked why she told them that she couldn't explain she just needed them to trust her so they all did as she asked.

**Clarke (00:35)**   
**Guess who else is coming home tomorrow...**

**Lexa (00:36)**   
**You? Please say that I get to see you tomorrow?**

**Clarke (00:37)**   
**Yes, you will definitely see me tomorrow.**

Lexa sent Clarke a selfie of her smiling widely.

**Clarke (00:39)**   
**You're adorable.**

**Lexa (00:40)**   
**I'm really glad I get to see you tomorrow Clarke.**

**Clarke (00:41)**   
**Sounds like you can't go another day without seeing me.**

**Lexa (00:41)**   
**I can't, it sucks being this far away from you.**

**Clarke (00:42)**   
**I feel the same but tomorrow...**

**Lexa (00:43)**   
**Tomorrow.**

**Clarke (00:43)**   
**You and me?**

She wasn't exactly sure what her question meant and she was sure the reply she would get from Lexa would be to ask her what she means but to her surprise that wasn't Lexa's response.

**Lexa (00:44)**   
**You and me.**

**Clarke (00:44)**   
**We'll talk.**

**Lexa (00:44)**   
**We will.**

**Clarke (00:45)**   
**You know if you're not ready yet that's okay.**

**Lexa (00:46)**   
**I am ready but thanks for always making sure I'm comfortable before we do things.**

**Clarke (00:47)**   
**I just like to make sure you're happy and not stuck doing something you don't want to do.**

**Lexa (00:48)**   
**You do so much for me Clarke. I hope someday I can make you as happy as you make me.**

**Clarke (00:49)**   
**You already have.**

**Lexa (00:50)**   
**Well I promise I will do my very best to make sure you are happy everyday.**

Clarke smiled so widely that it hurt but she couldn't stop it, the thought of Lexa wanting to make sure she was happy was so heart warming.

**Clarke (00:51)**   
**You're so sweet, I promise to do the same for you.**

It took a little longer for Lexa's response to come this time. Clarke glanced at the time and realized Lexa must be tired so she decided she would end the conversation soon to let Lexa get some sleep.

**Lexa (00:54)**   
**Thank you Clarke, you're sweet too.**

**Clarke (00:55)**   
**I should let you get some sleep.**

**Lexa (00:56)**   
**Okay, I'll text you before I leave tomorrow.**

**Clarke (00:56)**   
**I'll do the same, goodnight Lexa.**

**Lexa (00:57)**   
**Goodnight Clarke, sweet dreams.**

* * *

 

 

Lexa got another call from Clarke that night talking her through the aftermath of her nightmare, she wondered if finally being able to speak to Clarke would help with the nightmares.


	9. "Clarke."

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> -Lexa speaks  
> -A whole lot of fluff

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm so sorry this took so long.

The Jaha's stayed at the Woods residence that night so that they could be there to say goodbye before Lexa left. The whole family gathered around her car saying their goodbyes. Lincoln had promised to visit her soon, Anya had simply told her that sooner or later she would find out what Lexa was hiding. Indra reminded her to look after herself and Gustus hugged her tightly subtly slipping a wad of money into the pocket of her leather jacket as he did, hoping she wouldn't find it until later. Thelonious scooped her up into a hug whispering the words "don't study too much, take time to enjoy life." Alie pulled her into a hug next and whispered "you've got this Lexa, I'm so proud of you."

"Okay so I'll see you all in a few weeks." Lexa stated with a tinge of sadness showing in her voice. She got into her car and rolled down the window. "I love you guys."

"We love you too Lexa." Her aunt responded for all of them.

Lexa took one last look at her family, she just caught sight of the dejected look on Anya's face before it disappeared. "Hey Ahn come here for a second."

Anya approached the car with a frown on her face, clearly confused about what Lexa wanted her for.

"Lincoln said he'd come visit me soon, I'd like it if you would to."

"Really?" Anya couldn't believe Lexa actually wanted her to come see her when she didn't seem to want to share any details of her new life.

"Yeah, whenever you can."

"Okay."

Lexa very nearly gasped when Anya showed a genuine smile. There was no mischief in her smile, no anger or sadness, it was a very rare sight to see her cousin showing a smile that radiated joy.

"See you soon Lex."

"Okay, bye." When Anya moved back she looked at her family again before starting the car. "Bye guys."

She received a chorus of goodbyes from them before she pulled out of the driveway and started her journey back to Clarke.

 

* * *

 

Clarke woke up that morning to find she had a text from Lexa telling her she had started her journey back to Arkadia, a smile instantly appeared on her face knowing she would soon see Lexa. Raven and Octavia had been reluctant to stay at Abby's while Clarke went back to the apartment. After what seemed like hours of them whining Abby took them both outside and told them that they needed to let Clarke go on her own, they had explained to Abby that they didn't want to miss any Clexa moments but Abby pointed out that if Clarke and Lexa got to have some alone time then there might be a lot more Clexa moments in the future, she then told them that they might be too invested in the love lives of their friends and the two fled before Abby started asking them about their own love lives. That led to Octavia and Raven allowing her to go alone and telling her encouraging things like "go get your girl." of course they had no idea that Clarke was going to hear Lexa speak today, she had managed to keep that information to herself but she was sure if they had found out they never would have let her go alone.

Clarke was now frozen in place outside their apartment. She knew Lexa was here already, she had seen her car in the parking lot when she arrived. Standing outside of their home she felt extremely nervous, she hadn't realized just how big of a deal it would be for Lexa to speak until that moment. She stood there for a few minutes trying to drown out the worries running through her mind. She wrapped her hand around the door handle and sucked in one last deep breath before finally opening the door.

Clarke jumped when she saw Lexa leaning on the side of the couch, it looked as though she had known Clarke was outside the door and had been patiently waiting for her to come in. " _Jesus._ " She put a hand over her heart, it was beating so quickly she was sure she had been close to a heart attack. "Sorry, you just scared me a little." Clarke placed her bags on the floor beside her.

A small smile appeared on Lexa's face but she looked just as nervous as Clarke had before she came in.

Clarke's nervousness returned when she saw Lexa opening her mouth to say something, she panicked. "Are you hungry? Mom sent some leftovers back, she couldn't give us too much though 'cause she had to keep some to feed themselves." Clarke chuckled thinking about how Raven and Octavia would react if there was no leftovers for them. 

Lexa's smile grew thinking Clarke was adorable when she rambled.

Clarke picked up one of the bags and held it up in front of her as she spoke. "I can warm it up for us now or we can have it later. It might be too early but if you're hungry we can—"

"Clarke."

Clarke immediately stopped talking. She never thought her name was special, she never really loved it before but she does now, she loves the sound of her name rolling off Lexa's tongue, the way she said it so sweetly and gently, the way she clicked the 'k', no one had ever said her name like that before. "Say it again." Clarke practically purred.

Lexa chuckled and Clarke thought it was the most beautiful thing she had ever heard.

"Hi Clarke."

Clarke let out a sigh of relief . "Hi Lexa." She moved to wrap her arms around Lexa in a gentle hug.

They stayed like that for a couple of minutes until Clarke started swaying them slowly.

"Clarke we're dancing." Lexa whispered.

Clarke hummed in response.

"There's no music."

"I like this, I don't want to stop."

"Okay." Lexa dropped her head to Clarkes shoulder, her mouth pressed against the thin fabric of Clarke's shirt.

Clarke felt Lexa's lips form a smile against her shoulder and she melted even more into her embrace.

After a few more minutes Clarke stopped them but didn't let go of Lexa. "You have a beautiful voice."

Lexa wrapped her arms around Clarke a little tighter and sighed. "I missed you."

"I missed you too." Clarke squeezed her once more before she pulled back to look at her. "I'm sorry I was rambling, I was just worried."

"Why were you worried Clarke?" Lexa asked in a soft tone.

"I just thought that everything might change between us after this."

Lexa nodded her head in understanding. "Things will change Clarke but in a good way, now you won't have to guess what it is I want to tell you."

"Speaking of telling me things, I'm sorry that all that stuff happened to you, you didn't deserve any of that."

"I'm not as upset about it anymore, I've realized that if it hadn't happened then I probably wouldn't have met you." Lexa took Clarke's hand and led her to sit down on the couch. "I love the life I have now, being here with you makes me happier than I ever have been."

Clarke smiled fondly at her. "Lincoln was right."

Lexa's brow furrowed a little. "What was he right about?"

"You're so charming. It's hardly surprising though, you've always been charming even without using words."

"Lincoln said that?"

"Yeah."

"That's strange he usually doesn't tell anyone anything about me because he doesn't know what I want people to know."

"I guess we just have a way of getting the Woods family to open up to us."

"I don't doubt that." Lexa looked at her adoringly.

Clarke blushed and cleared her throat. "Can I ask you questions?"

"Of course."

Clarke remained silent for a while. "I can't think of anything now, my minds gone blank."

"I prepared for this." Lexa pulled out her phone and opened her bookmarks. "I did some research and found some websites with questions you can ask people to get to know them."

Clarke chuckled. "You're a dork."

"No I'm not." Lexa grumbled.

"Oh you totally are." Clarke smiled when Lexa pouted. "You're a cute dork though."

Lexa blushed. "I can accept that."

"Okay let's look at these questions then." Lexa handed Clarke the phone and she read out the first one. "If you could travel anywhere in the world, where would it be?"

"I think I'd like to see Rome, there's so much history there and it looks so beautiful. What about you?"

"Paris, I'd like to go to the Louvre along with all the other touristy stuff of course and best of all Disneyland."

"I've never been to Disneyland, I think I'd love it though."

"Oh you totally would, we'll go there someday."

"Really?" There was more than just a hint of hope in her voice. 

Clarke smiled. "I promise you now Lexa we'll go there someday."

Lexa beamed at Clarke. "Okay."

"Which are you more likely to fight for, love or money? Why?" 

"Love, money's not worth fighting for."

"My thoughts exactly."

"How do you define love?"

it didn't take very long for Lexa to think of a response, she had been thinking about this a lot recently. "Love is strange but amazing. You tell yourself that you're done with it, that it's not worth the pain but then you find someone that makes you see that love is what makes life worth living." 

Clarke nodded her head agreeing with Lexa before adding some more to it. "Someone that makes you see the beauty in the world again and fills you with this warm, calming feeling every time you're near them. Love definitely is strange but like you said it's amazing." Clarke took Lexa's hand and gave it a squeeze before moving on to the next question. "What are you most grateful for?"

"The people I have in my life."

"Same. What words of wisdom would you pass onto your childhood self?"

"Someday you'll meet her and everything will change." Lexa said, a small smile appearing as she spoke.

"That's beautiful."

"And true."

"If you could time travel, would you go to the past or the future?" 

"Past definitely."

"Hell yeah." Clarke held her hand up for Lexa to high five her which she happily did.

"What is 'home' to you?" 

"I have three places that feel like home. Here, your mom's house and my uncle's house, they're the places I feel most relaxed. What about you?"

"The same I think. I've never been to your uncle's house but I think if I ever did go there it would feel like home to me."

"I'll take you there someday."

"Yeah?" Clarke hadn't really thought about Lexa wanting to introduce her to her family but she was happy to hear that she might.

"Definitely."

"Would you rather explore a new planet or the deepest parts of the ocean?"

"New planet for sure."

"Same, so much more to explore. Would you rather live in the city or the woods? Oh I can answer that, you would definitely live in the woods." There was a pause before Clarke started giggling. "You'd be a Woods in the woods."

"Very funny." Lexa said dryly, rolling her eyes. "What about you?"

"I'd live in the woods with you, duh." Clarke stated like it was the most obvious thing in the world.

Lexa bit her lip before she responded. "I'd like that, I could teach you the best way to climb trees."

"You really enjoy climbing trees, don't you?"

"Yeah there's something about being high above the ground that just feels so freeing."

"I get it, I mean I didn't before but when you brought me up there it was so calming, apart from the near death experience."

"I will never let you fall Clarke." Lexa suddenly looked very troubled.

Clarke wondered just how badly she had scared Lexa when she had slipped that day. "I know, I trust you." She didn't want Lexa to be so worried looking but she didn't know how to stop her from looking so concerned which made her think of a question of her own to ask. "What makes you feel relaxed?"

"Your art." Lexa smiled but looked very nervous. "Actually I um....there's something I want to show you."

Lexa got up and offered Clarke her hand to help her up, when Clarke was standing Lexa intertwined their fingers and made her way to her room.

Clarke immediately noticed what Lexa wanted to show her. The painting she had given Lexa used to stand on a pile of books on her small desk to display it but was now hanging on the wall, above it was what looked to be a small battery operated light.

Lexa pulled her curtains closed and switched on the little light so Clarke could see what it looked like. "I did this when I got back this morning, It's my most prized possession, I wanted to make sure I displayed it properly."

"Thank you, it looks great." Clarke linked their hands again and looked over to find Lexa completely focused on the painting. "You always look at my art with so much wonder, what do you think when you look at it?"

"Your art is wondrous, you're incredibly talented Clarke every one of your drawings and paintings that I've seen all make me feel like I'm there in the scene you've painted. When my heads a mess I look at this and my minds clearer when I do because I feel like I'm sitting there looking at the trees and the clouds above them. I find it amazing how you perfectly capture the beauty of the world."

Clarke's mind went straight to the drawing of Lexa she had been keeping close to her while they were apart, she knew she had done a good job capturing Lexa's image but she didn't think there was any way she could ever perfectly capture Lexa's beauty, she was sure no artist ever could.

 

* * *

 

"I have something I'd like to talk about but it might be hard for you." Lexa said, her nervousness showing in her voice.

"I'll tell you if it's too hard to speak about."

Lexa nodded and took a moment to figure out what would be the best way to start this conversation. "When you were younger you had a friend called Wells."

Clarke gasped. "You knew Wells?"

"No, unfortunately I never got the chance to meet him. I know his dad Thelonious Jaha."

"I knew that name sounded familiar when I read your letter."

"Yeah he kind of figured out that you're Clarke Griffin when I was telling him about you."

"How is he?"

"He's good, he's married to a really nice woman, her name is Alie."

"I'm glad he's okay. I was too young to understand back then just how hard it must've been for him. You don't expect someone so young to die, you know? When you're young you think you're invincible, you don't spend a lot of time thinking about how you could die in some accident or any other way so when my parents told me that Wells was gone it just didn't make sense, I couldn't accept that he was just gone, it took a few years for it to really sink in." Tears started to stream down Clarke's cheeks as she spoke.

Lexa wrapped her arm around Clarke and pulled her closer. "What's your favourite memory of Wells?"

"It was about four years after we met. School had finished three days before and Wells wasn't supposed to be there for another few days, I was in my room drawing when the door burst open. There was Wells in the doorway with a banana split in each hand, I screamed his name and ran over to hug him. He said "A handsome man and ice cream but the important question is which one are you more excited about?" I said the ice cream and he tried to hand it to me but for some reason I thought he was going to smear it all over my face or something so I grabbed the plate and smeared it all over his shirt. He looked so shocked and asked why I did that, I told him that I thought he was planning to do that to me so I got him before he got me. He looked at his own one, then looked at me and smiled, I knew I was in trouble. A few minutes later I was running away from him, my plan was to run out the back through the patio door and it did work but not for Wells. My mom assumed Wells was empty handed so she planned to grab him unfortunately he ran straight into her and smushed the ice cream on her. My dad came in and saw the mess, he whined about how he missed all the fun, I told him it just meant that we were the winners. My mom said that her and Wells were going to get cleaned up but they secretly got ketchup and mustard, they snuck up on us and absolutely destroyed us. It resulted in an all out war between us. It took so long to clean up but it was so worth it."

"Sounds like a good time."

"It was." Clarke curled into Lexa's side even more. "Thank you."

"For what?"

"It's been a long time since I smiled while thinking about Wells. Every time I think about him I think about the way he died, if he suffered, if it was instant but you've reminded me that there's so many good memories I should focus on instead."

"If I were to pass away I know I wouldn't want you to think about how I died every time you thought about me, I'd want you to remember all the times we smiled or laughed together, the moments we shared that were just so perfect you can't help but smile when you're thinking about them."

"You're not going to leave me though, are you?" Clarke showed a sad smile, her eyes filled with worry.

"I'll never willingly leave you Clarke, I promise." Lexa squeezed Clarke's hand. "Do you think we would've met if things had been different? Like if we had gone to high school together would we be how we are now?" 

Clarke was grateful that Lexa had changed the subject steering them away from thoughts of loss. "I'd like to think we would've been best friends even back then."

Lexa scoffed. "Yeah right."

"Hey!!!" Clarke exclaimed, pulling away from Lexa slightly, looking very hurt. "What does that mean? You wouldn't want to be my friend?"

"Of course I would but Clarke, you're one of the most beautiful and fascinating women I have ever met, people were probably fighting each other to get to you, out of all those people why would you notice me?"

Clarke gaped at Lexa for a moment. "You do realize that you're the only one I notice in college, right? I mean as soon as class ends and I get out into the corridor I start looking for you, I find you endlessly fascinating Lexa, I'd gladly be late for my next class if it means I get to spend even just a few seconds with you. I can tell you with absolute certainty that if we went to high school together I would definitely have noticed the gorgeous girl with the most beautiful green eyes and a killer smile."

Lexa blushed and smiled shyly. "I guess we could've been best friends then."

"Or more." Clarke muttered to herself.

"What was that?"

"Nothing, should we get back to these questions?"

"Sure." 

"What would be your “perfect” day?"

"We would start with breakfast in bed, of course Octavia and Raven would be there, sitting at the end of the bed, you and I would still be under the covers because O and Raven were nice enough to buy us breakfast." Lexa spoke with a dreamy look on her face. "Then we would go to the forest near your mom's house, you could bring your sketchbook and draw there and I could hang out in the trees. Then we could meet up with O and Raven and we could all go to the beach, I haven't been to a beach in years."

Clarke made a mental note to take Lexa to the beach soon and then blushed when her mind wandered to the image of Lexa in a bathing suit.

"Everyone would be there, all of us, Abby and Marcus, my aunt and uncle, my cousin's, the Jaha's, Bellamy, Monty and Jasper, we would spend the rest of the day hanging out and then when it gets dark we could go out to dinner, then we could come back here and snuggle up on the couch while we watch movies." 

"Sounds so good."

 

* * *

 

Lexa looked to be deep in thought, Clarke couldn't figure out what she was thinking. 

"Why does Bellamy call you princess?" Lexa blurted out not realizing she was going to ask that.

Clarke groaned. "Do you really need to know?"

"You don't have to tell me if you don't want to." There was a tinge of disappointment in Lexa's voice.

"No it's okay, it's just embarrassing." Clarke sighed. "When I was born my dad told my mom that I looked like a princess, my mom agreed and he told her that they should name me Princess Griffin, luckily my mom had enough sense to say no to that but she did agree to it being my middle name."

Lexa laughed harder than she had in a long time. 

Clarke would've been embarrassed but she was too distracted by how beautiful Lexa's laugh was.

"I'm sorry for laughing, Clarke Princess Griffin."

Clarke's nose scrunched up at the use of her full name. "What's your full name?"

"Alexandria Liliana Woods."

"Whoa."

"Yeah, you got the cute name and I got the unnecessarily fancy name."

"I think it's badass."

"Really?"

Clarke hummed. "What's the origin story for your name?"

"My mom always liked the idea of me having a fancy first name, she said it would get me further in life. My middle name is my grandmother's name she was from Italy."

"So you're part Italian?"

"Little bit, yeah."

Clarke looked at Lexa's arm wondering if her Italian roots contributed to her slightly olive tone. "I love your tattoo, does it have any special meaning?" Clarke started tracing it with her finger.

"Yes actually my whole family have them. Multiple generations of my aunt Indra's family were tribal members, due to illnesses introduced by missionaries that wiped out most of their tribe and threats to their land the small amount of remaining members were forced to integrate into mainstream society, that included her great-grandparents and her grandfather who was a child at the time. They always wanted their family to remember their history so each new generation grew up listening to stories of life in the tribe, we grew up hearing about it from Indra. To honour his families past her grandfather combined the design of both his mother and his father's tattoos to create a beautiful design which he then got tattooed on his arm, when Indra's mother was old enough to get a tattoo she took her father's design and reworked it to create her own design and then Indra did the same so all their tattoo's were variations of the designs her great-grandmother and great-grandfather had but each one was unique." Lexa looked down at her own one. "When Indra and Gus got engaged he decided he wanted to share the tribute to her family so they designed a tattoo together for him to get and then my dad got one too, Indra told me he wanted to get it because he wanted her to know that even though they were only related through marriage he considered them blood relatives and she was as much his sister as Gustus was his brother. Anya was the next to get one, she got Lincoln to design it, he's a really good artist, he doesn't draw much though just doodles mostly anyways he designed his own one and my one too. It's nice to think that we all have a part of Indra's family history etched on our skin to carry with us all our lives and serve as a tribute to a society worth remembering. I think her great-grandparents would be happy to see that the memory of their tribe will always live on in our family."

"That's a really beautiful tradition." Clarke continued tracing the tattoo for a while before she thought of something. "You exercise a lot, don't you?"

"Not as much as I used to but a good bit yeah."

"So you're um....well....you're really physically fit?"

"I guess." Lexa shrugged, she held up her arm and took Clarke's hand resting it on her bicep. "You can be the judge of that." Lexa flexed allowing Clarke to see and feel the muscles there.

Clarke squeezed a little and hummed. "That's a definite yes."

"That's down to weightlifting." Lexa explained.

"I heard weightlifting tones your abs too." Clarke bit her lip when she stopped speaking.

"Uh yeah you can um check that too....if you want to." 

Clarke's hand trembled slightly as she moved it to run along Lexa's abs, the ridges helping her imagine just how toned Lexa was under her tank top.

When Clarke's hand traveled down and reached the top of her jeans Lexa's muscles twitched.

Clarke made a noise that Lexa couldn't identify, it was something between a groan and a whimper. "You okay?"

Clarke pulled her hand away. "Uhh yeah sorry that's....they're....yeah, very well defined abs. I'm um just gonna make coffee, want some?"

"Yeah thanks." When Clarke went into the kitchen Lexa tried to figure out what had just happened.

Clarke gripped the edge of the counter in the kitchen trying to get control of herself. She thought she couldn't be any more attracted to Lexa than she already was but the more she learned about Lexa and feeling how fit she is made that attraction grow even more. 

She had to get away to compose herself, in that moment she had wanted to straddle Lexa and kiss her until neither of them could breathe anymore but she couldn't, despite all the things her mom had said about Lexa being interested in her just as much as she is interested in Lexa she wasn't sure if Lexa was ready for anything like that after Costia or if she really did want that at all.

When she managed to get control of herself again she made their coffees and returned to Lexa just in time to hear her stomach growl. "Hungry?"

"Very."

"Okay I'll heat up the leftovers or do you want me to make something else?"

"No, I wanna try a Griffin thanksgiving meal."

They ate in front of the tv, remaining silent apart from Lexa complimenting the chefs every few minutes. Lexa held Clarke's hand whenever she could while they ate, Clarke noticed that Lexa didn't even have to look over when she reached for her hand like it was second nature to her, she thought it was so cute.

"Everything you and Abby make is always delicious." 

"You're an amazing cook too, where'd you learn to cook?" 

"Some of it I learned from Gus, some from Anya and a bit of trial and error." Lexa started gathering their dishes, she put her hand over Clarke's to stop her when she tried to help. "You relax, I've got this."

 

* * *

 

When Lexa returned to the couch after cleaning the dishes she found Clarke sprawled out on the couch. She moved to sit on the armchair but Clarke spoke before she could sit down.

"Wanna be my pillow?" 

Lexa turned to find Clarke propped up on her elbows leaving space for Lexa to sit. She didn't hesitate, sitting down and letting Clarke rest her head on her lap. After a moment she started playing with Clarke's hair.

Clarke shut her eyes and sighed, the feeling of Lexa's fingers treading through her hair slowly lulled her to sleep.

 

* * *

 

Clarke woke up to find Lexa had fallen asleep too. She sat up allowing herself time to wake up a little more before she slipped a strand of Lexa's hair behind her ear, trailing her fingertips along her jaw afterwards.

Lexa's eyes fluttered open, she smiled softly at Clarke. 

"Hi."

"Hey." Lexa's voice was thick from sleep and Clarke loved the sound of it. She yawned quietly before she wiped the sleep away from her eyes and stretched her arms above her head.

"Do you want to go somewhere with me?"

"I'd go anywhere with you Clarke."

"Cheesy but sweet, you sure know how to make a girl feel special."

Lexa blushed and smiled, she was happy to hear she had made Clarke feel special.

Soon after Clarke led Lexa up a few flights of stairs in their building until they reached the roof. Lexa had never been up there before, it was nothing special, all concrete, some flowerpots in a corner to the left, two of which were smashed, some had weeds growing out of them, clearly someones failed attempt to brighten the place up. Clarke sat down with her back to one of the walls and patted the ground next to her signalling Lexa to sit down next to her. When she did she looked at Clarke and found that her gaze was focused on the sky. "I come here sometimes to talk to my dad, I know he's gone but I like to think that he's somewhere out there watching over us. We went to his grave yesterday and talked to him but it didn't feel the same as this does."

"The people you lose are never really gone Clarke, they will be with you for as long as you love them."

Clarke tore her gaze away from the stars to look at Lexa. "You have a beautiful soul."

"Thanks." Lexa said shyly.

"I've never done this in front of anyone so I think I'm gonna need a minute before I can start." 

"Of course Clarke, take as much time as you need." Lexa settled into a more comfortable position, making sure her side was pressed against Clarke's side, wanting to support her without having to use words.

After a few moments of silence Clarke began. "Hey dad, this is Lexa." 

"Hello Mr.Griffin."

Clarke felt more at ease when Lexa waved up at the sky. "He'd want you to call him Jake."

"Hi Jake."

"Lexa's the girl I've been telling you about." Clarke kept her gaze focused on the sky, she could feel Lexa's eyes glued to her.

"Your daughter's incredible Jake, I've never met anyone like her. She is beautiful, smart and has the most wonderful kind heart."

"When I introduced Finn to my dad he told me that he didn't like him, he said that Finn didn't compliment me enough so he'd be really happy to hear you saying that."

"Jake was right, Finn's an asshole, you deserve someone that knows how lucky they are to love you and to be loved by you."

"Seriously?! Did you take a course to learn how to make a girl swoon?"

Lexa blushed and shrugged. "It's the truth."

"Thank you." Clarke took Lexa's hand and intertwined their fingers.

"I um....I think I'd like to change my idea of a perfect day." Lexa looked down at their joined hands and gave Clarke's hand a light squeeze. "We would still have our time alone and time with everyone but I think at the end of the day I'd like to come here with you so we can tell your dad about everything we did—" Lexa stopped abruptly. "Only if you want that though, I didn't mean to assume you'd want me to come here with you again, I would really like to though, it would be nice to have some connection to your dad."

"Lexa...." Clarke couldn't say anything else as the tears started streaming down her face.

Lexa pulled Clarke into her arms and held her as she cried. She didn't say anything while Clarke cried knowing that she probably needed to let it out.

Clarke pulled back after a few minutes. "What did I do to deserve you?" Clarke's voice cracked as she spoke, she cringed as a salty tear rolled into her mouth.

Lexa used her thumbs to brush away the remaining tears, when she was done she gently cupped Clarke's chin and tilted her head up slightly so that Clarke would look in her eyes when she said "what did _I_ do to deserve _you_?".

Clarke could see the sincerity in her eyes when she said it, she pulled Lexa into a hug, not knowing how to express how she felt right now. 

Eventually they shifted around until Clarke was sat between Lexa's legs, Lexa wrapped her arms around Clarke and held her as she spoke to her dad.

When she was done Clarke slipped her fingers between Lexa's over her own stomach, she dropped her head back to Lexa's shoulder and closed her eyes as Lexa spoke to Jake telling him about herself.

Lexa didn't let go of Clarke until it started getting cold and they decided they should go back down to their apartment.

 

* * *

 

Lexa was laying on her side staring at her bedroom door. She was worried that Clarke might start sleeping in her own bed again, she didn't want that but she knew that if Clarke wanted to sleep alone then she would just have to accept it. 

That didn't stop her from hoping that Clarke would come back and she was sure she would because Clarke hadn't said goodnight to her like she always did.

Soon the door cracked open slowly, there was a moment of hesitation before Clarke pushed it fully open. "Hi."

"Hey." Lexa responded feeling relief flood through her.

"Should we uh....talk about this?"

"I think the only thing I want to say about this is thank you for keeping me safe Clarke."

Clarke climbed into the bed and lay down facing Lexa. They lay there in silence, staring at each other as they thought about everything that had happened that day.

Clarke was the first to break the silence. "I'll never leave you, I couldn't it's too difficult being away from you."

Lexa knew what Clarke was trying to say. "I do trust you."

"I know how hard that is for you."

"It's not difficult when it's you."

Clarke let out a hum of contentment, she pushed Lexa's shoulder lightly so that she would lay on her back. She then curled into Lexa's side and rested her head on Lexa's chest. "Is this okay?"

"This is perfect." Lexa wrapped her arm around Clarke.

"Goodnight Lexa." 

"Goodnight Clarke, sweet dreams."

 

* * *

 

Clarke wiped away the last of Lexa's tears and pulled her closer. "It's okay Lexa I've got you." Clarke ran her fingers through Lexa's hair. "This might be a difficult question, you don't have to answer if you don't want to."

"Okay, what is it?"

"What happens in your nightmares?"

Lexa was quiet for a while and Clarke thought it meant she didn't want to answer until she heard Lexa let out a shaky breath. "I don't know where I am but it's dark and cold. I hear my dad's voice saying "I'm gone" over and over again. I hear my mom's voice next saying "I just don't care about you Alexandria." And then there's Costia saying "you're not worthy of my love or anyone else's Lexa." Then they all speak over each other and it just gets so loud."

"Oh Lexa." Clarke put her hand on Lexa's cheek and turned her face so she would look at her, she kept her hand there and gently stroked her cheek with her thumb. "It's all so wrong. With your dad it's just like you told me, he will always be with you as long as you love him." Clarke took her hand away from Lexa's cheek so she could intertwine their fingers. "Your mom loves you, I'm sure of that but drugs do crazy things to people, they mess with people's minds and change them into people we don't recognize anymore but she's still in there the drugs are just making that difficult to see." Clarke's jaw clenched just thinking about the next person they had to speak about. "Costia's just a bitch."

Lexa looked shocked. "Wow I don't think I've ever heard you say that about anyone."

"Well I don't usually but I have a deep hatred for that girl."

Lexa chuckled. "Okay."

"She's so wrong about you not being worthy of anyone's love, you are so worth loving Lexa, anyone that knows you could tell you that and even the ones that don't know you. There are so many people in our college that would do anything to be with you because they see what all of us see, you are so unique Lexa." 

Lexa shook her head and Clarke knew she was trying to protest that so Clarke decided to list some of her great qualities to her. "Obviously you're a goddess, you're so friggin' beautiful it's hard to believe you're even real sometimes, you genuinely care about everyone, you can make someones day better with just one look or gesture, even a small smile from you can make anyone happy. I've seen it all myself Lexa, you are so worthy of being loved and of loving someone."

Lexa looked to be deep in thought for a moment. "You make me happy everyday right from the moment I wake up to the moment I fall asleep and then again after I have a nightmare, it amazes me that you go to such great lengths just to make sure I'm having a good day."

"I do that because I care about you Lexa and I want to make your days as great as you make mine."

Lexa let a small smile show but Clarke could tell there was something she wanted to say, she was just about to ask her what was on her mind when Lexa finally decided to voice her thoughts. "I know we were only apart for less than three days but I feel so much better being here with you. Not being able to see you, not being able to hold your hand or hold you, it felt wrong Clarke."

"I know, it felt the same way for me too Lex but we don't have to worry about being separated again until Christmas." The mention of them having to be apart again in a few weeks and for even longer this time caused a sadness to wash over them. "Can you hold me again?"

Lexa lay back down and held out her arms. "Come here." 

Clarke shifted back into the position she had been in before they had woken up, the sound of Lexa's heartbeat already easing her worries. "I'm so glad we got to be alone today."

"Me too. As much as I miss the others I think us having this time to ourselves was really important because you are so important to me Clarke, I don't think anyone on this planet could do what you did, I think I was broken but you fixed me, you made me want to be better."

"You weren't broken Lexa, you were just a little lost, I was too but we helped each other find our way back to the people we used to be." 

Lexa hummed. "Hmm I think your explanation is better."

 

* * *

 

"Clarke I want to cook for you." Lexa whined.

"I just want to help." Clarke responded, still moving around the kitchen.

Lexa blocked Clarke's path, she leaned down a little, placed her hands on the back of Clarke's thighs and in one swift motion picked Clarke up. 

Clarke squealed, her legs immediately wrapped around Lexa.

Lexa placed Clarke on the table, she pulled back just enough to look at Clarke, with barely an inch of space between their faces she whispered "please let me cook for you."

Clarke nods slightly unable to form any words when Lexa was so close.

"Okay." Lexa whispered again. She reluctantly pulled back from where she had been standing between Clarke's legs.

They both remained silent for a moment after that trying to calm themselves after what had just happened.

Clarke was the first to break the silence. "Can I ask you something?"

"Of course you can." 

"Harper?"

Lexa's brow furrowed. "What about Harper?"

"She's um, interested in you?"

Lexa nodded, finally understanding what she was asking. "She's not my type Clarke."

"Do you....are you interested in anyone um....you know, in that way?"

"I am interested in one woman in that way." Feeling an unexpected surge of bravery Lexa spoke honestly and moved to stand between Clarke's legs again. "A woman more beautiful than everything and everyone on this planet." Lexa placed her hand on Clarke's cheek, her voice just barely above a whisper. 

Clarke's breath caught so quickly that she nearly started choking.

"A woman so talented it's inspiring." Lexa ran her fingers down Clarke's arms until they reached her hands, she pressed her own fingertips gently against Clarke's.

"A kind-hearted woman with the most incredible soul." She drew a heart shape with her finger on Clarke's chest. She then moved her hands to Clarke's hips and pulled her slightly closer.

Clarke put her hands on Lexa's shoulders and balled the fabric of her shirt in her fists, gently tugging it towards her silently telling Lexa that she wanted her to come even closer.

Lexa didn't hesitate to do so, getting as close as she possibly could to Clarke in this position.

Both of them inched closer until their foreheads were pressed together, neither of them could control their breathing.

Clarke's eyes fluttered shut first.

Lexa took a few seconds to memorize how Clarke looked in this moment before her own eyes fluttered shut.

The harsh breath Clarke sucked in when Lexa tilted her head slightly was audible to them both, it gave Lexa the final push she needed to start closing the remaining distance between them. The anticipation of their lips meeting caused a rush of excitement to course through their bodies.

"Honeys, I'm home." A voice boomed through the apartment.

Lexa jumped slightly, she sucked in a deep breath before she removed her hands from Clarke's hips and spun around but didn't move away from her place between Clarke's thighs.

"Raven?" Clarke called out.

"The one and only."

Clarke dropped her head to Lexa's shoulder and sighed.

Lexa then heard Clarke mutter something that sounded like 'I'm gonna kill her'.

"What are you doing here?" Clarke practically spat the words.

"Wow what a warm welcome." 

"Sorry. Hi Raven welcome home, now what are you doing here?"

"Me and O wanted to see Woods too we gave you a full day of alone time." Raven finally entered the room, a smirk appeared on her face as she looked at their position. "Hey Woods."

Lexa gave her a small wave in response.

"O's bringing our stuff in, she'll be over in a minute."

"You couldn't just wait until tomorrow?" Clarke's irritation was clear in her voice.

"Oh you wanna talk about impatience? I've never seen you eat a meal, pack and get out of your mom's house as quickly as you did yesterday and we both know it was all because you wanted to see Lexa just like we did."

Clarke let a small smile show, Raven had a point she couldn't argue with. "Touché."

"Now can we please focus on what's most important, I see food is being prepared, will there be some for me too?"

"Dont you have something to say to Lexa first?" Clarke asks.

"Fine, I might have missed you a little bit."

Lexa gave her that intimidating look she would give them on days when they would try to slip away without cleaning up first.

"Okay, I missed you terribly, there was a Lexa shaped hole in my heart, happy now?"

"Yes actually, very happy, I missed you a little bit too Raven."

"Good now can we please—" Raven abruptly stopped. "WOODS!!!"

"Reyes."

"You...you're...you're talking to me."

Lexa smirked. "I am."

Raven was so shocked she couldn't speak anymore, she just stood there with her eyes wide and her mouth hanging open.

Moments later Octavia walked in. "Hey Lex, we missed you, did you have a good thanksgiving?"

"I missed you too and I did thanks for asking O. How was your thanksgiving?"

Octavia now shared Raven's stunned look, Clarke couldn't stop herself from laughing at them.

"So for the first time since I met you I've spoken to you and the two of you just stand there not saying a word? Jeez guys I'm supposed to be the silent one, remember?" Lexa's smirk grew and she arched a brow as she spoke, her comment breaking Octavia and Raven out of their trance.

"What the hell?!" Raven practically yelled, playfully slapping Lexa's arm.

Lexa chuckled and swatted Raven's hands away. "Surprised?"

"No, these are the faces of two people that are in no way surprised by this at all." Raven responded sarcastically.

"When did this happen?" Octavia asked.

"Yesterday when Clarke came home I spoke to her but I gave her some warning before Thanksgiving."

"That's why I needed you two to let me come here alone yesterday." Clarke explained. 

"I was pretty sure I still wasn't going to be able to speak to any of you up until Clarke started rambling yesterday, it gave me the push I needed to do it."

"This is fantastic, I'm so happy you're speaking now." Octavia tried to hug Lexa but ended up having to trap her in the middle of a hug with Clarke because Lexa still hadn't moved away from Clarke and looked as though she wasn't willing to do so anytime soon.

"It's awesome but so unfair."

The three of them all looked at Raven clearly confused about what she had said.

"You were already so freaking cool with your hot badass vibe, awesome cooking skills and that beautiful car, you really had to have a sexy voice too?"

Lexa chuckled. "Sorry I can't exactly control the way my voice sounds."

"Actually I see her point, it's really unfair how cool you are." Octavia concluded.

"Told you everyone see's it." Clarke whispered to her referencing their conversation the night before.

"So is it okay for us to ask why you didn't speak?"

Octavia nudged Raven and then glared at her. "You don't have to tell us Lex."

"Sorry I'm just curious but O's right you don't have to tell us."

"No it's okay I'll tell you but it's kind of a long story and we haven't eaten yet so can I tell you after we have breakfast?"

"Yeah sounds good."

"Do we get food too?" Octavia asked with a pleading look.

"You two are never full." Clarke rolled her eyes at them. "Will you let me help you now?"

"Fine." Lexa agreed reluctantly.

 

* * *

 

Despite already knowing everything that happened to Lexa it really hurt Clarke's heart hearing Lexa speak about it, she struggled to hold back tears hearing the pain in Lexa's voice as she spoke. At some point Clarke had snuggled up to Lexa and started gently stroking her arm, it was soothing for Lexa, the sensation giving her something to focus on while she explained it all to them. When she finally finished telling them her story there was complete silence, Lexa didn't mind though she knew it was a lot of information to take in at once and Clarke had moved again so she was now practically in her lap so she was completely focused on Clarke right now anyway. 

Raven was the first to break the silence. "If you ever see that Costia bitch again, you can murder her I'll be your accomplice, Griff and O will be our cover story."

Lexa laughed when the two others agreed like this was the plan and nothing could change that. "I don't know what I did to deserve you three but I am so lucky to have you in my life."

"We love you too Lex." Octavia cooed.

"So is there anything else you want to know about me?"

"Am I ever going to win a race against you?"

"Possibly, you're a worthy opponent." Lexa admitted.

Octavia beamed in response.

"Where the hell did you get that beautiful car?" Raven asked.

"It was my grandfather's car. When he passed away he left the car to my uncle and my dad, we didn't have the room to store it in our garage but my uncle did so the car was always at his house. My dad and Gus would always disappear to work on it whenever we visited them. It was barely able to move when they inherited it but they worked hard to get it up and running again. After my dad passed away Gus kept working on it and once he had it finished he gave it to me."

"Well if it ever gives you any trouble I can help you fix it, I know just about everything there is to know about that car."

"Thanks Reyes, hopefully it won't but it's good to know I've got an expert to help me out if it does."

 

* * *

 

Hours had passed, the four of them had settled down in front of the TV chatting about their favourite shows and movies. When the subject turned to food Lexa and Clarke decided they didn't want to cook so it had been decided they would get takeout.

"Me and Raven will get the food." Lexa announced, standing up and pulling her keys from her pocket.

Raven groaned. "Why do I have to go?"

"Because I'm letting you drive." Lexa responded dangling her keys above Raven's head.

"Seriously?" Raven asked, her shock and excitement clear in her voice.

"Seriously."

Raven got up and hugged Lexa. She looked at Clarke and Octavia and stated "later losers." before she took the keys from Lexa and dashed out the door.

Lexa chuckled at Ravens excitement, she placed her hand on Clarke's shoulder. "Back soon love." Lexa blushed immediately after realizing what she had just called Clarke.

"Okay _babe_." Clarke responded and looked up at Lexa with a big goofy grin.

Lexa's blush deepened and a small shy smile appeared on her face before she cleared her throat. "Alright, see you both soon."

Octavia smirked at the two deciding she would use the alone time with Clarke to find out what happened the previous day. 

 

* * *

 

Lexa grew confused when she climbed into the passenger seat and saw that Raven looked very serious.

"Something wrong?"

"No it's just—" Raven stopped and drew in a long breath before she spoke again. "You and I have a similar past, you know with the whole abandoned by our mom's thing, I just want you to know that I'm here if you ever need someone to talk to that gets it."

Over the past few weeks Lexa had learned that Raven wasn't the type of person that felt comfortable talking about things like this so she knew this was difficult for her to talk about. "Thanks Raven, I'm here for you too if you ever need me."

 

* * *

 

Octavia waited until Lexa had been gone for a few minutes before she turned off the tv and twisted in her seat to face Clarke. "So?"

"So....?"

"How are you feeling about all this? What happened yesterday? I want to know everything."

Clarke remained silent for a moment contemplating whether or not she should tell Octavia everything but ultimately deciding that she needed to get it all out. "Her voice is so beautiful and she says such thoughtful things, she's the most fascinating person I have ever met. She's so perfect and wonderful but not in a way that she knows how perfect she is because she's actually really insecure and vulnerable sometimes and it all just adds to her charm....I brought her up to the roof last night to speak to dad."

Octavia gasped quietly. "You never do that with anyone."

Clarke nodded her head acknowledging that she realized how significant that was. "Lexa was incredibly understanding, she just sat in silence with me while I worked up the courage to talk and she said the most beautiful things about me. Then she said she wanted to do it again if I was okay with it and _god_ I just fell apart and she just held me while I cried."

"Is it okay for her to do that again?"

"Yeah, it sucks that they didn't get to meet while he was still here but if he's out there somewhere watching over us I think he'd like it if Lexa talked to him too."

"Yeah he definitely would. What else happened?"

"We spoke about our um....sleeping arrangements?" Clarke was confused about what to call it.

"And?"

"She thanked me for keeping her safe at night. I slept with my head on her chest and I could hear her heartbeat, I've never had a better night's sleep than I did last night."

"So you're still going to sleep in the same bed?"

"Yes."

"And is that what you want?"

"Yes. After the last few weeks I don't think I'd be able to sleep without Lexa."

"Aww that's so cute." Octavia playfully poked Clarke.

"Shut up."

"I've never seen you so crazy about someone before."

"Cut it out or I'll stop feeding you all the time."

"Okay but since we're on the subject of food me and Rae were wondering when you're gonna make pancakes again, I feel like its been years since you last made them."

"I think I'll make them tomorrow."

Octavia squealed with joy.

"It'll be interesting to see if Lexa likes them."

"She would have to be crazy not to. Now back to the previous subject, I am your best friend Clarkey and I have been for a very long time, which means I know when you're keeping something from me and I can tell it's something big, so what aren't you telling me?"

Clarke remained silent and turned her head to try to hide the guilty look on her face. 

"Stop holding out on me Clarke." Octavia whined.

"Fine." Clarke huffed. "I think— no, I know we almost kissed."

"What the hell stopped you?"

"Raven interrupted us."

" _Ugh_ we have the worst timing." Octavia shook her head, she couldn't believe they had interrupted an opportunity for them to kiss twice now.

"Yeah maybe you two should start sending us texts so we know when we'll be interrupted."

"Or you could just kiss her the next time the two of you are alone."

Clarke scoffed. "Yeah right. I very nearly lost it just feeling how toned she is, at this point a kiss would probably kill me."

"Hold on, how exactly do you know she's toned?"

"Umm...."

Octavia gasped. "Clarke did you just start touching her out of no where?"

"Well no, I kind of mentioned how often she works out and she offered to let me judge how fit she is."

Octavia smirked. "You were hoping she would."

"Maybe....?"

"Clarkey you sly dog."

"At least I didn't randomly start touching her."

"Actually I don't think it would be weird if you did to be honest, you two have always been very touchy."

Clarke's brow furrowed. "What do you mean?"

"I don't think I've ever seen you two go a whole day without having some form of physical contact, you hold hands and cuddle for the majority of the day, you're practically a couple already."

"We could go a day without touching, we did during Thanksgiving." Clarke suddenly felt very defensive.

"Yeah but you looked so sad not being able to touch her and I saw you looking at that selfie she sent you at least fifteen times that day and you kept caressing her jawline with your thumb."

"She has a nice jaw."

"She does. She has a great jaw that you so desperately wanted to be touching and probably kissing." Octavia stated, making obnoxious kissing noises to tease Clarke.

" _Ugh_ why am I friends with you?"

"Because you _lurve_ me but not as much as you _lurve_ Lexa."

"O stop it."

"You know I wouldn't have to do this if you would just make a move already."

"Can you please stop it?"

"I'll stop if you tell me why you won't just tell her?"

Clarke let out a defeated sigh. "Lexa just spoke to us for the first time, that was a really big step for her. Making sure she feels secure here is my first priority, I don't want her to feel like I'm pushing her into anything. I don't know if she's ready for that after what Costia put her through but if she ever is I'll still be here, I'd wait forever for Lexa."

Octavia smiled fondly. "You really do adore her."

"It's Lexa, how could I not adore her?"

Octavia squealed in delight again. "I'm sorry, I'm just so happy you're finally admitting that you like her. The two of you will get there someday and it will be so worth the wait Clarke, you have no idea how perfect you two would be together."

"She's already perfect."

"Ugh you're so sappy, I love it."  

Clarke rolled her eyes at Octavia but struggled to hide her smile, her friends support meant the world to her.

 

* * *

 

Lexa hopped back into the car with their takeaway bags. "I got fries for the drive back."

"So you're letting me eat outside of our allotted eating times?"

Lexa shrugged. "Wouldn't be terrible having someone my own height but you have to promise you won't tell the girls."

"Have I told you how much I love my awesome friend Lexa? She lets me drive her cool car, she lets me eat whenever I want, she makes all of us happy."

"You guys make me happy too."

"And how does Griff make you feel?"

Lexa was confused about why Raven was asking but she answered honestly. "Stronger and braver than I ever thought I could be."

Raven smiled seemingly satisfied with her answer. "O text me while you were in there, she said Griff's gushing about you."

"She is? What's she saying?"

Raven tapped away on her phone and after a moment she got a reply. "She loves your voice, your thoughtfulness, your mind and soul." Raven smirked when she read the next part and looked at Lexa. "Apparently you've got an incredible hot body too."

Lexa breath hitched. "Clarke said that?"

"Mmhmm and I'm going to need you to explain how Griff knows that you've got 'rock-solid abs and seriously strong arms'."

"Um I might have told her she could feel me a little." Lexa blushed.

Raven wolf-whistled. "Woods got game."

"It wasn't like that."

"But you wanted it to be?"

Lexa stayed quiet but her blush deepened giving Raven the answer she wanted but she decided she wanted to hear the answer too. "Use your words Woods."

Lexa huffed. "Yes, I wanted it to be like that, okay?"

"That wasn't so hard was it?" Raven teased. "And? How was that experience for you?"

"I may have been too hasty opening up to you. I think I should've waited at least another week before I spoke to you."

"Oh shut up you love me, I'm like your love guru."

"I'm going to need you to explain that."

"You can't talk to Clarke about love stuff because it's her you want to talk about so you can come to me whenever you need advice about moving your relationship forward with her."

"I never said—"

Raven wasn't sure what Lexa was going to protest, her use of the 'L' word or saying she liked Clarke but she interrupted her before she could deny either. "Don't bother getting defensive, you and I both know that it's Clarke you'd want to talk about because you like her." Raven smirked and quickly looked at Lexa. "A lot."

Lexa groaned. "Am I really that obvious?"

"Oh hell yeah. Me and O knew from the beginning."

"Oh god, that's so embarrassing." Lexa covered her now very red face with her hands.

"If it helps we think it's fantastic."

"Really? You're not worried I'll hurt her?"

Raven laughed. "You might like to think you're this hard-core badass which you are when you get all protective but the rest of the time you're just a teddy bear especially when it comes to Clarke, I know you could never hurt her."

"Thank you for trusting me."

"Now it's your turn to trust me and answer my question, how did the touching incident make you feel?"

"I was a little....aroused by it."

"Griff probably felt the same."

Lexa hesitated for a moment before speaking. "She made this noise, I don't know what it meant."

"Can you imitate the noise?"

Lexa did what she thought was a very accurate imitation of the noise.

Raven chuckled. "Pretty sure that means she was turned on Woods."

" _Oh._ " Lexa blushed profusely.

"Now imagine what would happen if you kissed her."

"End of conversation Reyes."

"Oh come on, you can't tell me that you don't want to kiss her."

"I'm not saying that, I'm just saying I'm not discussing the first time I kiss Clarke before it even happens."

"Fine but I get a full detailed report about it after it happens."

Lexa groaned. "You're the worst Reyes." 

"You love me though."

 

* * *

 

"Okay so now that you're talking to us who's up for a game of pictionary?"

The three raised their hands in the air.

"Awesome me and Rae against you two."

"You two should quit now before me and Clarke destroy you." Everyone looked at Lexa surprised that she had just said that and with such conviction too

"Damn, now there's two of them." Raven shook her head.

Clarke jumped up off her seat and squealed excitedly, Octavia and Raven both groaned dramatically.

Lexa frowned, confused by what was happening. "Someone want to fill me in?" 

"Clarkey is scarily competitive when it comes to games like this."

"We're gonna kick your asses." Clarke practically yelled.

 

* * *

 

After countless arguments, a few scrunched up pieces of paper being thrown by both teams and on one occasion even having the dice thrown at Octavia who narrowly avoided being hit in the eye by it, Lexa and Clarke celebrated their glorious victory.

 

* * *

 

"Did you hear the way she says Griff's name?" Raven asked as they made their way to their bedrooms.

"Umhmm like it's the most beautiful thing she has ever said." Octavia smirked.

"Tomorrows gonna be so much fun."

"I can't wait to see Mama G's reaction."

 

* * *

 

"O!!!!"

"Jesus Raven where's the fire?"

Raven grabbed Octavia's arm and started pulling her over to the other apartment.

"Wait, is there really a fire?"

"No, shut up and just follow."

Octavia frowned when she saw Clarke standing with her ear pressed against the door of the bathroom with her eyes shut and a smile on her face. When they got closer she understood why Clarke looked so pleased."Is that Lexa?"

"Yup." Raven replied popping the 'p'.

"Damn she's a good singer."

 _"I've never understood but it's amazing_  
_The way you never let the past enslave me_  
_How do you do it?_  
_Love the heart, the part of me_  
_That desperately needs a remedy_  
_I wanna be a life you keep changing"_

"Those are some really nice lyrics, I wonder if there's a certain someone she's singing about." Raven said with a teasing tone.

"Shhh I'm trying to listen." Clarke scolded.

 _"Cause this is where I end_  
_And this is where you start_  
_And everything I needed_  
_Is everything you are_  
_Love has come for me_  
_Oh, love has come for me"_

"She's full of surprises." Octavia said, Clarke and Raven hummed their agreement.

 _"And I'll go where you want me to be_  
_And even though I may be broken_  
_I can see your love has come for me_  
_I'm never gonna get it all together_  
_So, what's left to do but surrender?"_

All of them had been so distracted by the sound of Lexa's voice they failed to notice that Lexa had already finished her shower.

 _"Cause this is where I end_  
_And this is where you start_  
_And everything I needed_  
_Is everything you are_  
_Love has come for me_  
_Love has come for me_  
_Yeah, love has come for me_  
_Love has come for me"_

Lexa pulled the door open just as she finished the song, Clarke didn't have time to react before she started to fall. Luckily Lexa was quick to react hooking her arms under Clarke's ensuring she wouldn't fall any further. Clarke wasn't sure if that was the best idea when her head landed on Lexa's chest, her cheek pressed against one of her breasts which was only covered by her towel. The situation only got worse from there, Clarke tried to rectify the situation by pushing herself up quickly causing the top of her head to collide with Lexa's chin. They both yelped in pain, Clarke covered her head with her hands while Lexa rubbed her chin. 

Octavia and Raven were completely oblivious to everything that had happened, the minute they heard the bathroom door opening they dashed away assuming Clarke would do the same, not knowing that she wouldn't be able to.

"Oh god Lexa I'm so sorry,  _ugh_ what the hell is wrong with me?!"

Lexa couldn't help but find Clarke even cuter. "Clarke relax it's—"

"No I shouldn't have— I'm an idiot."

Lexa approached Clarke and pulled her into a hug. "You are not an idiot Clarke, you are one of the most intelligent people I have ever met. These things happen sometimes, I'm sure even Einstein had his fair share of accidents." Lexa pulled back and placed her hands on the sides of Clarke's head. "Is your head okay?"

"A little sore but it's okay, how's your chin?"

"Not as sore as your head must be." Lexa removed her hands from Clarke's head. "Come on, let's get some ice for that."

Clarke walked ahead of Lexa to the kitchen and got a towel to put the ice in.

Lexa pulled out the bag of ice from the freezer but nearly dropped it when she felt fingertips touching her neck. "Clarke." Lexa managed to gasp out her name.

"You have more tattoos."

"I do." 

Clarke ran her finger around it a few times, enjoying watching goosebumps form as she did. "A broken infinity?"

"Nothing lasts forever."

"Do you really believe that Lexa?"

Lexa didn't have to look to know that Clarke had moved much closer, she could feel her warm breath hitting the back of her neck. "Not anymore."

"How far down does this one go?" Clarke ran her fingertips down along Lexa's back tattoo until she reached the point where it was covered by her towel.

"It goes almost all the way down to the end of my spine."

"Wow."

"I'll show it to you someday."

"When?" Clarke asked, barely waiting before Lexa finished speaking.

"When I'm wearing more than a towel and not holding a bag of ice."

"Oh right sorry." Clarke backed off and Lexa took a deep breath before turning around, she took the ice over to the counter, put some in the towel and wrapped it up before walking back to Clarke and holding it on her head. "Better?"

"Yeah thanks." Clarke's eyes darted down momentarily to Lexa's cleavage which was now showing a lot more than it had been only moments ago. Realization hit Clarke and her eyes widened as she quickly averted her gaze to the ceiling.

"What's wrong?" Lexa asked noticing Clarke sudden change in demeanour.

"Um your towel is slipping down a little."

"Oh shit." Lexa quickly adjusted the towel holding it in place with one hand while she continued holding the other towel full of ice on Clarke's head. "I should...." Lexa trailed off assuming Clarke would know what she was going to say.

"Oh yeah, yes, right, you go ahead and do that, I can manage this."

 

* * *

 

When Lexa returned to the kitchen after putting on her clothes she found Clarke pouring pancake mixture into the frying pan, Octavia stood behind her holding the ice on top of her head. "You know I would've cooked, right?"

"I know but I promised I'd make pancakes and I couldn't handle the sad looks I was getting from these two, this seemed like the best solution."

Lexa shook her head and smiled fondly, even when she was injured Clarke still did her best to make sure her friends were happy. "What can I do to help?"

"How good are you at flipping pancakes?"

"Awful." Lexa admitted sadly.

"Really?"

"Yeah that's why I never cook them."

"Wanna learn how?" She asked while flipping one expertly.

"I've tried before Clarke, I'm just not able to do it." 

Clarke could see the disappointment written all over Lexa's face and she found it so adorable that Lexa was upset just because she couldn't flip a pancake. "O I think I'm okay now, you can get rid of that." 

When Octavia backed away Clarke used the spatula to remove the pancake from the pan and put it on the stack next to her, she then poured more of the mixture in. She could see Lexa moving a little closer watching her curiously. 

Clarke took Lexa's sleeve and tugged on it to get her to come closer, when she did Clarke took her hand, wrapped it around the handle of the frying pan and covered it with her own, she waited until the pancake was ready to be flipped before she started her explanation. "What we're gonna do is just move it to the rim of the pan." She tilted the pan slightly to get it to slide up on the edge. "Okay now we lift the pan up just a bit." They guided the pan up three inches in the air. "This is the tricky bit, we have to tilt it slightly forward and then quickly flick our wrists upwards, are you ready?" When Lexa nodded they did it just as she had explained and the pancake successfully landed back in the pan.

"We did it." Lexa voice was laced with awe.

Clarke chuckled, she thought Lexa's astonishment was adorable. "Yeah, we did."

Raven appeared beside them. "This is a moment to be remembered, stay just like that." She backed away a little bit from them and snapped a photo, she realized that this was the first photo she had of them both looking directly at the camera. "You two look so cute." She flipped the phone around to show them. They both smiled fondly at the photo and they both made a mental note to ask Raven to send them that picture later.

"Are you ready to try on your own this time?"

"I think so, yeah."

She watched from a distance as Lexa poured in the mixture, Clarke loved how focused she looked, she could tell Lexa was determined to get it right. She got closer to her when the time came to flip it, she watched intently as Lexa followed all her instructions perfectly and the pancake landed flat on the pan.

"Clarke I did it. Did you see that? I didn't mess up." Lexa spoke so quickly it was difficult for them all to understand what she was saying.

Octavia and Raven chuckled at Lexa's excitement.

Clarke moved behind Lexa and wrapped her arms around her in a tight hug. "That was great Lexa, good job."

Lexa leaned back against her and let out a content sigh. "Thanks for teaching me Clarke." 

 

* * *

 

Clarke was surprised by how quickly they finished cooking all the pancakes, one of the reasons she hadn't made them in a while was because of how long it took to make them but having a cooking partner made it so much easier and of course there was the added bonus of getting to see Lexa's eyes sparkle with pride after every successful flip.

 

* * *

 

Lexa moaned loudly. "Oh my god Clarke, it's so good."

Clarke gaped at Lexa, her body instantly reacted to the delicious sound Lexa made.

Octavia and Raven struggled to keep their laughter in seeing Clarke's reaction.

"I think it's safe to say she likes them." Octavia stated with a grin.

"If I had to choose one thing to eat for the rest of my life this would be it."

"Maybe you should marry her, then she can make you pancakes everyday." Raven playfully suggested.

"I'd marry her regardless of that." Lexa mumbled around a mouthful of pancakes, thinking no one would understand. 

The sound of Clarke's fork hitting her plate proved she wasn't as subtle as she thought she had been. Her eyes widened as she looked up from her plate and saw Octavia and Raven with stunned looks on their faces confirming that they had heard her too.

"Did you just say—" Clarke began but was quickly interrupted.

"Could you pass me the syrup please? I like syrup it's good but so sticky. Better to have too much syrup than no syrup at all in my opinion but these pancakes are really good without syrup, actually I don't think I need the syrup." Lexa rambled trying to change the subject. 

Octavia and Raven were the only ones that spoke while they ate after that. Lexa silently scolded herself for being so reckless while Clarke repeated Lexa's words over and over again in her mind trying to figure out if she had been mistaken but the words were so clear to her.

 

* * *

 

Lexa allowed Octavia to drive this time deciding it was better than letting Octavia and Raven fight over it any longer, Clarke was more than happy to let one of them drive so that she could sit in the backseat with Lexa. She sat as close to Lexa as she could not caring about what Octavia and Raven would say about her trying not to leave any space whatsoever between them. "Are you nervous?"

Lexa nodded. "Just a little."

"You don't have to say anything until you're ready to, whether that's today or a year from now mom won't mind."

"I think I'll do it today but maybe not straightaway."

"Okay, I'll be right by your side the whole time, if you don't feel ready just give me a signal."

"Huh that was our system too, great minds think alike." Octavia stated looking back at them in the rear-view mirror and smirking when she noticed how close they were.

"System for what?" Clarke asked curiously.

"I may have tried to speak to you a few times but I chickened out."

Clarke looked momentarily shocked. "I think it's better that it happened this way."

"Yeah?"

Clarke nodded. "It was special this way and we got a full day to talk without interruptions."

 

* * *

 

Abby was waiting out front for them when they arrived, she was eager to see them all but mostly she wanted to see if Clarke and Lexa were acting differently around each other, she hoped their time alone had helped them realize that they obviously have feelings for each other.

When they got out of the car Abby smiled when Lexa offered her hand to Clarke to help her out, her smile only grew when she kept holding Clarke's hand as they all walked towards the house. 

"Hey Lexa, I've missed you, I hope you had a great Thanksgiving." Abby said before she pulled her into a hug, the three others joining in a moment later.

Abby wasn't surprised to see Clarke and Lexa's hands linked again after they pulled back from the hug.

 

* * *

 

While Abby was gathering the dishes after dinner Lexa leaned over to Clarke and whispered "I'm ready."

"Are you sure?" Clarke asked in the same low tone.

Lexa nodded confidently.

"Mom could you sit down for a minute?"

Abby frowned unsure of what was going on but she placed the dishes she had gathered down on the table and sat back in her chair. "What's wrong honey?"

"You should say hello to Lexa."

"I did?" Abby was even more confused now.

"Just say hello to her." Octavia stated, understanding what was going on.

"Okay....hello Lexa."

"Hello Abby."

Abby looked so shocked the girls were sure she would faint but her expression soon turned to one of pure joy and she reached across the table to squeeze Lexa's hand. "I'm so proud of you."

Lexa smiled shyly. "Thank you Abby."

"You have a lovely voice."

Clarke scoffed. "Her voice isn't just lovely, it's beautiful."

Abby chuckled. "Relax honey it's not an argument."

Clarke turned a deep shade of red when she realized what she had done.

Lexa smiled affectionately at Clarke and squeezed her hand. "Your voice is beautiful too Clarke."

Octavia and Raven noticed the fond smile on Abby's face after she heard the way Lexa said Clarke's name. "Alright, you three are cleaning up while I get to learn more about Lexa, if you're okay with that?"

"I'd like that."

Abby smiled at Lexa and quickly glanced at the window. "It's nice outside today, let's talk out back."

 

* * *

 

So far their conversation had been light but Lexa could tell Abby was curious about why she didn't speak when she could. "I can tell you why I didn't speak before, if you want."

"That's your choice Lexa, you shouldn't feel like you have to explain unless you want to."

Lexa nodded, grateful that Abby wanted it to be her choice but already knowing what she wanted to do. "I'm hoping you'll all be in my life for a very long time so I think it's important you all know my history. I've already told Clarke, O and Raven, Marcus knows too but he found out through a mutual friend so it's just you left to tell and I do want you to know."

 

* * *

 

After Lexa had told Abby everything she had gone through Abby stood from her chair and moved in front of Lexa to pull her into a tight hug. "What you've gone through must have been so difficult, you are such a strong young woman Lexa."

"We all have our struggles, I'm just glad I've got so many great people helping me get better." Lexa smiled fondly.

Abby gave Lexa's shoulder a squeeze before she sat back down. "Speaking of helping people, Octavia mentioned that Clarke showed you how she speaks to Jake."

"She did, I think it's a wonderful way to communicate with him."

"I'm glad she showed you, it's hard for her to really open up to anyone about him but it's obvious she wants you to know everything there is to know about her."

"I'd like that and I want to do the same for her."

"She's special to you, I can see that and it feels good knowing that you care so much about her. Before you came along she was miserable, she hid it well but I could see it, I tried to help a few times but she wouldn't or maybe she just couldn't open up to me." Abby looked to be deep in thought for a moment. "Maybe it was always meant to be you that healed Clarke's wounds. I'm not usually someone that believes in destiny but it's kind of difficult not to around you and Clarke."

"Clarke is so special to me, all of you are but me and Clarke connect in a way that's so mind-blowing, you know? It's like she knows exactly what I'm feeling and thinking, it feels so good to have—" Lexa abruptly stopped speaking and looked at Abby sheepishly. "I probably shouldn't be telling you all this since you're her mom."

"It's okay, I won't tell Clarke anything you say to me and just so you know I'm very much enjoying this conversation, it's nice hearing you talk about her in such a lovely way."

A small smile appeared on Lexa's face. "Could you tell me about what she was like when she was a kid? Octavia and Raven too?"

"Oh Lexa I am so glad you asked me that." Abby chuckled.

 

* * *

 

Abby could see Clarke looking at them through the kitchen window, she could see Clarke was anxious, it made her smile knowing that her daughter was watching out for Lexa even when she was with someone she knew could be trusted not to upset Lexa. "I think Clarke wants me to give you two some time alone so I'll head back inside."

After Abby went back inside Clarke came out with two cups of coffee, she handed one to Lexa before she sat down next to her. "How did that go?"

"It was great, I really enjoyed talking to her."

"You've been doing great these last few days, I'm really proud of you."

"Thanks Clarke, I'm glad I've spoken to you all, I think it was important for me to do this I feel like I can breathe easier now, If that makes any sense."

"It does." Clarke reached over and squeezed Lexa's hand.

"So I have a question for you." Lexa said with an all too innocent expression. 

"Okay....?" Clarke said warily.

"Did you really give your fifth grade teacher a Valentine's day card in which you professed your undying love for him?" Lexa smirked.

Clarke covered her face with her hands. "Oh my god I can't believe she told you that."

Lexa chuckled. "I asked her to."

"You betrayed me." Clarke said dramatically, putting her hand over her heart.

"Would you have told me?"

"No it's so embarrassing." Clarke whined.

"And that's exactly why I asked your mom. I want to know everything there is to know about you Clarke, I don't want to hear about just some parts of your life, I want to learn about all of it because it's what made you the person you are now."

"I suppose I can forgive you for that." Clarke smiled, she couldn't be mad at Lexa when she was being so sweet, she didn't think she could ever be angry at Lexa for any reason.

"If it helps I got her to tell me stories about Octavia and Raven too."

"That makes it a little better."

"So does that mean I can get a cuddle now please?"

Clarke didn't respond she just got up and sat down in Lexa's lap twisting slightly to face her while Lexa wrapped her arms around Clarke's waist.

Clarke rested her head against Lexa's and gently stroked her arm. Neither of them spoke, both wanting to relax in the little bubble of affection they were wrapped up in.

It wasn't long before Raven joined them outside, followed by Abby and Octavia soon after that. They spent the rest of the afternoon answering Lexa's questions about their past, all of them trying to embarrass Clarke as much as they could with Abby equalizing it by telling Lexa more stories about Raven and Octavia. Clarke didn't mind being embarrassed because every time she got to hide her face in the crook of Lexa's neck and inhale the sweet smell of her perfume. 

Lexa couldn't have imagined a better day than this one. Listening to everyone tell their favourite stories, being able to tell Clarke how cute she was every time she looked embarrassed, running her hand up and down Clarke's back in a soothing manner, it would all seem ordinary to anyone else but to Lexa this was a day she would remember years from now and she knew she would be smiling when she did, she was sure it would be one of her favourite memories.


	10. Meet the family

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> -Lincoln and Anya visit Arkadia  
> -Christmas  
> -New Years Eve

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay long story short, I had this chapter ready to go a few months ago it just needed a bit of tweaking but then there was an incident and I ended up in hospital for way too long. I had to forget about this story for a while but I am back now and although it is trickier for me to write now I will keep it going I can't really say how long it will take though, Luckily I did keep a lot of notes for what way I wanted the story to go so I'm starting to piece together what I think I had in mind originally. Anyways I hope you enjoy this chapter and I am sorry for the delay.

Clarke heard the door shut, she knew it was either a bored Raven or that Lexa was back from her morning run, she hoped it was the latter. "That you babe?"

Lexa appeared in the kitchen doorway, she leaned against the door frame watching Clarke cook omelettes for their breakfast. "You're really never gonna let me live down the pet name incident, huh?"

"Oh no way, the pet name is here to stay besides I know you secretly love it." Clarke smirked.

"I may be somewhat fond of it." Lexa admitted.

"Then be prepared to always be called babe, baby, sweetie, cupcake—"

Lexa scoffed. "Cupcake Clarke? Really?"

"I think that one might be my favourite." Clarke responded cheekily.

Lexa groaned. "Whatever you want." There was a small pause as Lexa thought of something she could call Clarke. "Skai Prisa."

Clarke frowned. "What was that?"

"What?" Lexa asked, feigning ignorance.

"The last thing you said what was it?"

"Oh you mean Skai Prisa?"

"Yeah what is that?"

"That's my new pet name for you."

"What does it mean?"

"Well I can't go giving away all my secrets, you'll just have to figure it out yourself Skai Prisa." Lexa teased.

"That's not fair." Clarke whined. "What if it's mean?"

"I would never insult you Clarke, I promise it is intended to be complimentary and you'll find out what it means someday."

"What will it take to get you to tell me?"

"Promise you'll never call me Cupcake."

"No deal."

"Then I guess you'll just never know."

"Fine." Clarke huffed. "I think I would be quite a good detective anyway so it probably won't take long for me to figure it out."

"We'll see." Lexa smirked before turning to leave so she could shower before they ate, she knew there was no way for Clarke to figure it out on her own but she wasn't going to tell her that just yet.

 

* * *

 

After speaking to those closest to her Lexa found it easy to speak to just about everyone and anyone. This became clear to them all at Monty and Jasper's next party.

They arrived an hour early to help set up everything, Lexa and Monty had just moved the couch back a bit before flopping down onto it. Monty grabbed two controllers and held them up. "I think we've earned a break, wanna play?"

Lexa shrugged and took one of them. "I guess I could spare some time to defeat you again."

Monty looked surprised for a moment but then smiled. "I don't know Commander, I've been practicing I think there's a good chance you'll lose this time." 

"Have you been practicing with Jasper? Because that's not gonna make you good enough to beat me."

The two were completely unaware of Octavia's presence. She watched their playful banter until they started playing at which point she made her way into the kitchen. "Lex spoke to Monty."

"Really? How'd he take it?" Raven asked while she was examining some of the bottles on the counter.

"He was his usual wonderful self, said nothing about it just said he was planning to beat her in their game this time."

"Should I go out there? Just to make sure she's okay." Clarke asked, her worry clear in her voice.

"What's the big deal? They've been alone before and they've never fought." Jasper asked mixing two unknown liquids in one cup and handing it to Octavia. "Try that."

"You do know that Lexa has never spoken to you or Monty, right?" Octavia asked before taking a sip of it.

Jasper frowned and tilted his head in confusion. "Yes she has."

"Nope not once." Raven responded.

"Really? I could've sworn she had spoken to us before."

"God you're so oblivious Jasper." Octavia took another sip of the drink. "This is awesome by the way."

"She didn't even speak to us before this week." Clarke informed him.

"Huh." He frowned, thinking back to his past interactions with Lexa before he shrugged. "Well at least she's talking to us now." Jasper stopped what he was doing and exited the kitchen.

The three girls followed him, curious about what he was up to.

He stopped next to the couch and smiled down at Lexa. "Hey Lexa."

"What's up Jasper?" She responded distractedly.

"Nothing, just wanted to say hey."

Lexa looked away from the game to smile at him. "Hi Jasper."

"Cool." He stated simply and then returned to the kitchen.

Lexa chuckled and shook her head, her gaze returning to the screen.

"You know you're pretty awesome sometimes Jasper." Octavia said once they were all back in the kitchen.

"A total sweetheart." Clarke placed a kiss on his cheek as thanks for not making a big deal out of it.

"Will I be getting compliments and kisses every time I speak to Lexa?" He asked with a boyish grin.

Raven patted his back as she moved past him. "Don't push your luck."

 

* * *

 

_Later that night._  

Clarke watched as Harper placed her hand on Lexa's upper arm, even from across the room she could tell that Harper was flirting. She desperately wanted to go over there and stop her but she didn't have an excuse to do so, Lexa could speak now so if she didn't want Harper to hit on her then she could tell her that herself but that didn't stop the jealousy bubbling up inside of Clarke watching them chat.

Lexa's demeanour seemed to change very suddenly, Clarke noticed her entire body seemed to tense, her mouth pressed in a thin line rather than showing the small smile that had been there only moments ago.

She wondered what they were speaking about. Harper looked to be disappointed as she retracted her hand from Lexa's arm, she nodded her head in understanding before the two shared a brief and awkward hug.

Lexa seemed to put a little more distance between them when the hug ended.

Clarke felt like she was finally able to breathe again now that Harper wasn't touching Lexa anymore. She finally stopped watching them when Monty joined them and Lexa seemed to be introducing him to Harper, she looked around the room wondering where Octavia and Raven were. She soon found them by the door greeting Miller and Bryan. Thanks to their collective efforts to spread the word amongst their friends that they should only call Miller when they needed a cab the two were finally in a place where they were financially stable enough to relax and take time off every now and again.

She joined her friends greeting the couple with hugs, her gaze occasionally strayed back to Lexa but she was mostly able to focus her attention on Miller and Bryan as they caught them up on what had been going on in their lives.

"Hey Lex, you're looking gorgeous as usual." Miller complimented her as she approached them and slung an arm over Clarke's shoulder.

"Hey guys, thanks, you two are looking handsome as you always do."

Just like Monty and Jasper neither of them reacted too obviously when Lexa spoke, Bryan had met them only once before when he and Miller dropped by the apartment to bring them a cake to thank them for getting Miller more customers, ones that they could trust not to harm him but he was aware that Lexa didn't speak and Miller had seen them three times since meeting them so he was used to a silent Lexa. "That's one hell of a compliment from a goddess." Bryan responded.

"Only you guys could get into a competition to see who could compliment the other more." Octavia pointed out.

"Before you get stuck into this compliments competition let's get you guys some drinks." Raven led them all towards the kitchen.

Clarke stopped Lexa before she could follow the others. "Was everything okay with Harper? It looked like things were getting a little intense."

"Yeah, she was getting a little flirty so I made it clear to her that we could be friends but nothing more, she took it well and she seems to be getting along with Monty." Lexa watched as Monty led Harper into the crowd of dancing people. "Actually I think she might have already forgotten about me."

"I doubt it. I imagine it would take a lifetime to forget about someone as incredible as you, luckily I don't have to worry about losing you, right?"

"Right, I'm afraid you're stuck with me forever."

"Hmm sounds good to me babe." Clarke took the hand Lexa had draped over her shoulder and squeezed it softly.

 

* * *

 

_ Back at their apartment.  _

That night they learned that Lexa was unsurprisingly not a sloppy drunk even while intoxicated she was still as dignified as she was when she's sober, she was however a very affectionate drunk particularly towards Clarke.

Clarke was delighted to discover that drunk Lexa's favourite pet name for her was 'love', she hadn't used it since the first time it had accidentally slipped out and Clarke was glad to hear it again.

Now as they sat in their own kitchen, Clarke watching Lexa reluctantly chug the pint glass of water she had practically ordered her to drink, Clarke took a moment to reflect on all the things she had learned about Lexa over the last few days. She thought she couldn't possibly like Lexa any more than she already did but with every new little detail she learned about Lexa her feelings just grew stronger. "I really loved seeing you so relaxed tonight."

Lexa yawned before responding. "Easier now that I can talk."

"Tired?"

Lexa hummed in acknowledgement.

"Let's get you to bed."

A few minutes later they were both ready to climb into bed. When Clarke entered the room she found Lexa sitting on the edge of the bed desperately trying to stay awake while she waited for Clarke.

"You okay?"

"Umhmm." Lexa perked up at the sound of Clarke's voice. "Can we cuddle?"

Clarke bit her lip thinking Lexa was absolutely adorable. "Of course we can, you total cutie."

Lexa smiled sleepily at Clarke.

"Wanna be the big or little spoon?"

"Whichever. I'm happy as long as I get to wake up next to you."

Clarke cradled Lexa's face in her hand. "So cute."

Lexa nuzzled into Clarke's hand. " _God_  you smell so good."

"It's probably the perfume on my wrist babe."

Lexa shook her head a little. "You always smell good and look good and you're sweet and kind and—"

"And all those things are true about you too but we should really get you into bed now."

"You'll come to bed too, right?"

"Of course, who else would I be cuddling tonight?"

"Just me I hope, my cuddles are only yours."

Clarke bit her lip, drunk Lexa was incredibly adorable. "And mine are only yours too."

 

* * *

 

_The next morning._  

Lexa cautiously approached Clarke, she tentatively reached out hoping she could snatch a piece of bacon without Clarke noticing but a light slap to her hand told her she hadn't been very subtle.

"It will be ready soon, just wait a minute."

Lexa moved to stand directly behind Clarke, dropped her head to her shoulder and wrapped her arms around her waist. "But I'm so hungry Clarke and you make amazing bacon."

"Flattery will get you everywhere." Clarke took a piece of bacon and held it up by her shoulder for Lexa to take. "Just this once."

Lexa happily took the offered food. "Thanks Clarke, you're the best."

"I'm serious Lex, just this time." Clarke said sternly.

"Mmhmm, okay Clarke." Lexa grinned as she finished off her piece of bacon. "Since it is just this once could I have more?"

"Oh my god you're just as bad as the other two, how did I not know about this?"

Lexa shrugged. "I hid it well. So do I get more?"

"No." Clarke did her best to look authoritative.

Lexa pouted and used her best puppy dog eyes to try to sway her.

"Damn you're too cute, you can have more but you're not allowed to use that look again in this kitchen, understood?"

"Understood." Lexa confirmed with a big beaming smile on her face.

 

* * *

 

After two days Lexa used that look again claiming she hadn't made any promises so this time around Clarke had been sure to make her promise before giving her more food.

 

* * *

 

"Have you seen my phone charger Clarke?" Lexa spoke loudly unsure of where Clarke was in the apartment.

"Yeah, I put it back in our room."

Lexa smiled hearing her call it their room.

Clarke's room had been converted into an art studio, the bed was moved against the wall to make more space and her canvasses were stacked on top of it.

Lexa had secretly made space in her drawers and closet for Clarke and had then casually mentioned that it would be easier for her to move some of her stuff in there even going as far as to reason that the empty drawers in Clarke's old room could be used to store more art supplies.

This had been the first time either of them mentioned that Lexa's bedroom was now their bedroom.

Unbeknownst to her Clarke had also realized the significance of what she had said, she bit her lip nervously awaiting a response from Lexa.

"Thanks Skai Prisa."

Clarke let out a sigh of relief, she rolled her eyes at the pet name, she secretly liked it but she wouldn't admit that. "You're welcome, Cupcake."

* * *

 

Lexa and Octavia were neck and neck nearing their building when Lexa spotted Clarke walking towards their building carrying a bag that looked to be from the small store down the street. Just as they passed her Lexa decided that she could afford to give Octavia a bit of a lead and catch up to her before they reached the building so she turned to face Clarke and jogged backwards, she was glad she did when she realized that she had just caught Clarke staring at her ass, she smirked as Clarke looked up locking eyes with Lexa and blushing profusely when she realized she had been caught. She continued to hold Clarke's gaze for a moment, just as she was about to turn and catch up to Octavia she noticed Clarke's eyes trailing down her body as if silently telling her she planned to check out Lexa's ass again once she turned around but then disaster struck. Lexa knew before it even happened, her eyes widened, her mouth fell open preparing herself to warn Clarke when she saw her foot catch on a large crack on the pavement sending her tumbling down onto the hard ground, a pained grunt escaping her throat.

Lexa was by her side in an instant. "Jesus Clarke, are you okay?"

"Not feeling so great." Clarke groaned and turned over to lay on her back.

"Where does it hurt?"

"My knee mostly."

Lexa looked at Clarke's knee, she couldn't see much through the ripped fabric but there was definitely blood there, she knew she had to get Clarke back to the apartment and clean the wound to avoid it getting infected. "Okay, should we try getting you up or do you need a minute?"

Clarke sat up with a deep groan.

Lexa took her hands and helped her up, she swung one of Clarke's arms over her own shoulder so she could act as a crutch for her, she gave her a minute to adjust before they started their short walk back to the apartment.

When they reached the building Octavia was standing by the entrance waiting for Lexa so she could gloat about her victory but she realized something was wrong as soon as she saw that Lexa was practically carrying Clarke. "What happened?"

"It was my fault, my ass is very distracting in these shorts." Lexa joked.

Clarke chuckled which caused her steps to falter, she winced from the sharp pain it caused in her leg.

"Sorry." Lexa looked at her apologetically.

"Don't be, it was funny and true." Clarke smiled softly letting Lexa know she wasn't upset.

"Hell yeah it is. I'm straight and even I have to resist the urge to grab your ass when you wear those shorts."

Both Clarke and Lexa stopped walking and looked at Octavia with stunned expressions.

Octavia simply shrugged. "Me and Rae may have discussed how perfectly sculpted your ass is a couple of times in the past, usually because of those shorts."

Clarke frowned and looked over at Lexa. "Can I ban you from wearing those shorts outside of our room?"

"Yeah I think that might be for the best." Lexa agreed, unsure of how to feel about her friends discussing her ass.

"Hold on, when exactly did you two clarify that you now share a room?" Octavia asked with a smug grin on her face. "Oh and don't think I'm not going to question why Lexa would be wearing those shorts exclusively in the bedroom." She wiggled her eyebrows suggestively.

"O my leg really hurts can we go inside now so I can sit down?"

"Usually I wouldn't let you get away with that but since you're injured I'll forget about the interrogation." Octavia moved to hold the main door to the building open for them. "For now."

"We'll just have to distract her when she brings it up again." Lexa whispered to Clarke.

"Damn, you know I really believed I had beaten you this time." Octavia's disappointment was clear in her voice.

"Technically you did." Lexa pointed out to her.

"No it doesn't count." Octavia stated in a defeated tone. "But I will beat you one day Commander."

 

* * *

 

When they got upstairs Clarke told Octavia that she wouldn't have time to cook them breakfast this morning because she would have to clean up her wound and Lexa would have to shower so she wouldn't have time to cook either, Octavia told her not to worry about it and said she would tell Raven to have cereal instead. Lexa helped Clarke into their room and helped her over to the bed. Clarke told her she could deal with cleaning it on her own but Lexa told her that she wanted to help and pointed out it was partly her fault. She kneeled in front of Clarke, she started to roll up the leg of Clarke's jeans but soon encountered a problem, there was no way to get the fabric up over her wound without grazing the skin and causing Clarke even more pain. She tried to think of a solution but only one came to mind and it made her blush.

Noticing Lexa's look of discomfort Clarke gently touched her shoulder to get her attention. "Hey what's wrong?"

"It's uh...." Lexa took a deep breath. "You're going to have to take off your pants."

Clarke felt her own blush creep up on her cheeks. "Oh...."

"Will you um....will you be able to do that part yourself?"

Clarke's mind flooded with images of Lexa kneeling in front of her, hooking her fingers in the waistband of her jeans and pulling them down slowly, her fingers lightly grazing her skin as she did. She swallowed harshly, her mouth suddenly very dry and nodded her head frantically. "I'll manage, could you grab me a pair of shorts to change into?"

"Of course."

 

* * *

 

After a few minutes there was a soft knock on the bedroom door. "Is it okay for me to come in now Clarke?"

"Yup."

Lexa entered the room holding a small basin. Her eyes went straight to Clarke's injured leg, she winced slightly seeing the gash on her knee and the grazes along her calf, she offered Clarke a sympathetic look as she kneeled down in front of her placing the basin on the floor beside her. "This is probably going to be painful." Lexa pouted wishing there were some way to make this easier for Clarke.

Clarke had a fond smile on her face, she was touched by Lexa's concern. "I know, it's okay I'll tell you if it's too much."

Lexa nodded in approval of that plan. "Ready?"

"Yeah." Clarke winced as soon as the cloth touched the damaged skin but it didn't take her long to adjust to the feeling.

Clarke was completely mesmerized by Lexa, she was so incredibly caring and gentle as she cleaned the wound, she couldn't help but smile at the adorable focused look Lexa had on her face. She reached down and placed her hand on Lexa's cheek.

Lexa momentarily stopped and looked up at Clarke, her breath hitched at the look of pure adoration on Clarke's face.

"You are amazing." She gently stroked Lexa's cheek with her thumb.

Lexa's mouth opened and closed a few times, there was so much she wanted to say but she had no idea where to start.

"Clarke?" Raven's voice carried through their apartment.

Clarke sighed, she had lost track of how many times their moments had been interrupted by one of their friends. "We're in here."

Lexa offered her a sympathetic smile knowing that they were losing out on what could have been a significant moment for them.

Raven poked her head into the room. "Hey, are you okay?"

"Yeah, Lex is taking good care of me."

"Playing doctor are we?"  
  
"She has excellent bedside manner." Clarke playfully added.  
  
"Well Miss Griffin you will have to excuse me for a moment, I believe Doctor Griffin gave me a cream that should help this heal nicely." Lexa stated attempting to play along.  
  
Raven flopped down on the bed next to Clarke. "Hey I didn't interrupt anything, did I?"  
  
Clarke thought about telling her she had but Raven had already interrupted them a few times now and she knew she felt bad about it, she didn't want to make her feel worse so she shook her head. "Lex was just cleaning the cuts for me."  
  
Raven narrowed her eyes slightly wondering if that was the truth but she decided to accept it. "So how's it feel sharing a bedroom with Woods?"

Clarke rolled her eyes. "Octavia wasted no time."

Raven poked Clarke's side. "You gonna answer?"

Clarke glanced around the room, a small smile growing into a big grin as she took in the image of her and Lexa's possessions mixed together to create a decor that perfectly represented them. "It feels like home now."

 

* * *

 

 _A few days later._  

"Hello, I'm looking for Lexa Woods is this her apartment?"

Clarke looked at the woman in front of her, she had never seen her before. "Hi, can I ask how you know Lexa?"

"I'm her cousin Anya."

"Oh come in, sorry about that I just needed to be sure you weren't some stalker or someone coming after Lexa."

"That's fine, I'm glad to see you're looking out for her safety, I'm guessing you're her roommate?"

"Oh yes sorry, I'm Clarke, it's nice to meet you." Clarke extended her hand to Anya.

Anya took the offered hand and shook. "Nice to meet you too Clarke, so is Lexa here?"

"She's gone to the shop, she should be back soon though, you're welcome to stay here and wait for her if you'd like."

"Thanks Clarke, that would be great"

"You hungry? I just made pancakes, I always make extra."

"Sounds great" Anya followed Clarke into the kitchen. "Whoa!!!" Anya exclaimed. "When you said you made extra I really didn't expect this, there has to be at least fifty pancakes here. You'd hardly manage to eat that many on your own, why make so many?"

Clarke chuckled. "There's exactly fifty. It's a habit I picked up from living with Raven and Octavia, they would always fight over who got the last pancake so I just started cooking more so they'd be too full to want the last one unfortunately that still didn't stop them, their stomachs are just bottomless pits. They live across the hall so I still make them because they have some crazy sense of smell and always know when there's pancakes."

"Why don't you just lock your door?"

"I tried that but Raven's a certified genius, she can pick any lock in seconds."

"Ah so she uses her super powers for evil, that sucks, you must hate having to cook so much."

Clarke set a plate of pancakes down on the table in front of Anya. "Nah I don't mind, they're my best friends, I like knowing they're eating a good breakfast. When I lived with them I would usually make about thirty-five but it turns out your cousin has an appetite equal to Raven and O's so now I make a little more."

"Oh I know all about Lexa's eating habits, when she lived with us I always refused to let her into the kitchen while I was cooking because she used to snatch the ingredients while I was cooking, she's always been impatient, I hope she's not doing the same to you."

"She tries but I don't let her, it's so hard to stop her when she pouts though, she's like a little puppy."

Anya chuckled remembering how Lexa would always stand outside the kitchen door pouting on days when she was exceptionally hungry. "I wouldn't blame her for trying to steal some of these they really are amazing." Anya took another bite of the pancakes. "I must say Clarke I am surprised Lexa's being herself around you, she has a tendency to close herself off to people. She's a tough one to crack but she's been through a lot, it's understandable why she's so closed off."

"I know, she's had it rough." Clarke said with a sadness in her tone that made Anya believe she really did know.

Anya frowned. "Wait, you know? how do you know?"

"Lexa explained it to me."

"She speaks to you?! How long has she been speaking to you?" Anya was so shocked she jumped up off the chair startling Clarke by doing so.

"Um, just a little while."

"What's a little while?"

"Since Thanksgiving."

"I knew something was going on with her, so damn sneaky." Anya sat back down completely shocked to find out her cousin has been so open with someone she's only known a few weeks.

Clarke felt a little uneasy with the awkward silence that enveloped them after that, she cleared her throat in an attempt to draw Anya back into conversation.

Anya realized that the lack of sound was making Clarke feel a little uncomfortable. "I'm sorry, I just don't know how to react to this. Lexa hasn't spoken about this to anyone with the exception of our family and she certainly hasn't tried to make any new friends in the last two years so I'm just really shocked, you must be really special to her Clarke."

Clarke blushed it was one thing to have her friends and family point out that she was special to Lexa but hearing it from someone close to Lexa made it more real to her.

Anya continued on when Clarke hadn't said anything. "I mean she had two roommates last year and never spoke a word to either of them, if she hadn't gotten mail I don't think either of them would even know her name."

It was finally starting to sink in for Clarke just how significant it was for her roommate to have confided in her. "She talks to other people here too, I'm not the only friend she has."

"What?! There's more friends?!" Anya was shocked that Lexa 'I'm a lone wolf, I don't need anyone' Woods had friends, plural.

"Well yeah she talks to Raven, O, my mom and a few more people so it's not like I'm the only one." Clarke couldn't decide if she felt happy or sad that she's not the only one Lexa speaks to but she brushed the thought off thinking it was selfish to want to be her only person.

"Oh okay, I guess she must've met them through you, yes?"

"Yep, they're not the type of people that will accept being just acquaintances so she really didn't have much of a choice, one way or another they were going to find a way to become friends with her. Her and Raven have sort of the same personalities and O is her exercise buddy, Lexa's like the member of our group we didn't know we were missing."

"Wow, this is unbelievable, Linc would be able to process this better than I am, I think it's going to take a little time for me to fully understand that Lex has friends but I am so happy to see her finally becoming herself again." Anya felt so overjoyed thinking her cousin isn't alone, that she's learned to open up to people. "I think i'd like to meet Raven and Octavia sometime, I still can't wrap my head around the idea that Lex told not only you but more people about Costia, her parents and her nightmares."

"Umm actually she hasn't spoken to O and Raven about her nightmares yet, they know she has nightmares but they don't know what they're about, only I know that but they understand that it's something she's probably not going to tell them about and they won't push her to tell them about them, besides they're really rare now, it's been a few weeks since her last one."

"Ohh so you are special then Clarke." Anya could see Clarke was clearly blushing so she smirked a little. "Even we don't know what they're about, I'm pretty sure she didn't even share that information with Alie and she's basically her therapist."

"I...." Clarke cleared her throat, trying to garner enough time to think of a reasonable explanation. "I'm not special, she probably just hasn't gotten around to telling anyone else yet." She was trying to convince herself and Anya that this had to be the reason.

"Hmm, think what you want Clarke but I know my cousin and that is definitely not why you're the only one that knows." Anya continues eating her pancakes while watching the blonde trying to bite back a smile.

Just then the door burst open. "Pancakes we are here to devour you!" Raven yelled into the apartment as two hurried sets of footsteps could be heard coming towards the kitchen.

"Think about what I said Clarke." Anya said seriously to Clarke before anyone could interrupt their conversation.

Clarke nodded slowly still trying to process the fact that a member of Lexa's family considered her special to Lexa.

"Never fear pancakes I have arrived....oh uh hi" Raven said rounding the corner into the kitchen coming to a sudden stop upon seeing the stranger causing Octavia to crash into her sending them both falling to the floor.

"What the hell Reyes? Why'd you knock me down?" Octavia asked climbing back up off the floor, she glanced into the kitchen seeing the attractive stranger and realized what had happened. "Oh I see how it is, you see a pretty girl and forget all about me." She whispered to Raven as she helped her up and continued on into the kitchen.

"Raven, Octavia, this is Anya, she's Lexa's cousin."

Anya shook Octavia's hand and walked over to Raven to do the same.

Having regained her composer Raven shook her hand, she looked her up and down and smirked when she saw the light pink tint on the strangers cheeks. "I guess good genes run in the family."

"Play nice Reyes" Clarke said, not hearing what Raven had said but assuming it was something sarcastic.

"What she said." Octavia agreed when she saw the mischievous look on Raven's face.

"I am playing nice, I just complimented her. Why do you always assume the worst Griff? And O you know better than to agree with her." She rolled her eyes at her best friends and made her way further into the kitchen to grab some pancakes.

"So Anya do you like the pancakes?" Octavia asked while shoving another bite of her own pancakes in her mouth.

"They're delicious, I see why you two would pick the locks to get to them." Anya replied looking thoroughly satisfied by the confused look on the two brunettes faces.

"How'd you....." Raven trailed off when it dawned on her. "Aww Griff you been telling Anya about us, we always knew you loved us but we didn't think you talk about us that much, did you even give her a chance to introduce herself before you told her our life stories?"

"Shut up Reyes and Blake i see you giggling, she wanted to know why I'd cook fifty pancakes when I was the only one here."

"Well" Raven started as Clarke prepared herself for what she was sure would be an embarrassing response. "There are three reasons for the pancakes, firstly Clarke loves cooking us breakfast."

Clarke scoffed but she had a smile tugging at the corners of her mouth.

"Second," Octavia grabbed Clarke and held her hand over her mouth to silence her. "When Clarke misses Lexa—" Clarke's eyes widened, she knew something bad was coming.

"Which is all the time." Octavia helpfully added earning herself an elbow in the ribs but she still managed to hold on tight to the blonde while Raven continued.

"When Clarke says she's making pancakes she knows Lexa will finish up whatever she's doing as quickly as she can and come for them and third, Clarke really loves the sounds Lexa makes when her pancakes are in her mouth, she's very _very_ vocal when eating Clarke's pancakes."

Clarke was redder than anyone thought was humanly possible.

Anya couldn't hold back her laughter while Raven smiled, clearly proud of herself.

Clarke was squirming trying to free herself from Octavia who was still holding on tight even while she laughed. The blonde mentally prepared herself for the scolding she would give all three girls when she escaped from Octavia.

"Mmm I smell pancakes." All four girls heard coming from somewhere in the apartment which led to even more laughter from three of them.

"Oh my god." Lexa exclaimed from the doorway of the kitchen. "What is going on here?!" The three girls continued laughing while Lexa moved to free Clarke "Octavia release her." Octavia immediately let go. "What happened here?" Lexa asked Clarke.

Clarke stood stunned, looking like a deer in headlights. Lexa picked up on this awkwardness as the laughter died down and she turned noticing for the first time that Anya was there. "Anya Oh my god!" She rushed at Anya enveloping her in a tight hug. "I missed you." She whispered.

"Hey Lex, I missed you too, I like your new friends."

As soon as she said this Lexa started piecing things together. There was hysterical laughter, there was Anya who has known Lexa her whole life and really enjoyed telling people her embarrassing stories and there was Lexa's friends who Anya had just been alone with. She pulled back from the hug and looked at Anya accusingly. "Anya what did you do?!"

"Nothing, we were just laughing at something we heard."

"What was it? And why was Clarke being restrained?" She looked over to see Clarke blushing so much she could be mistaken for a tomato.

"Oh....um....I forgot what it was, do any of you remember?" Anya looked to the three others who all shouted a loud 'no' in unison.

Lexa looked at them all suspiciously. "Clarke why were you being restrained?" She asked calmly watching as the blonde averted her gaze and fidgeted awkwardly.

"Umm...." Clarke tried desperately to think of an excuse, when she did think of one she just blurted it out. "Oh I wasn't being restrained, that's just how Octavia likes to hug me now."

Everyone looked at her like she had lost her mind.

Octavia didn't want to embarrass her friend anymore so she decided to go along with it. "Yeah, um....me and Clarke wanted a different hug like a secret handshake so we were just trying that out when we heard....whatever it was that made us laugh, I don't think that will be our new hug though."

Now everyone looked at Octavia like she had lost her mind, even Clarke.

Lexa watched them all closely for a moment. "Whatever" she said, shrugging her shoulders. "The most important thing right now is that I get to put those beautiful pancakes in my mouth." She headed towards the table to grab some, she was so distracted that she missed Anya, Raven and Octavia desperately willing themselves not to laugh and Clarke reverting back to her previous tomato-like state.

Lexa sat at the table while the others took the opportunity to regain their composure before joining her. Just as they did Lexa took her first bite and instantly let out a delicious moan as her taste buds came alive resulting in yet another round of uncontrollable laughter and Clarke's face turning so red she could guide Santa's sleigh.

"Okay that's it." Lexa almost yelled, standing from her seat. "One of you is going to tell me what it is that's so funny and since I think it's something my cousin said about me she's up first, so Anya would you like to explain what happened?"

"Honestly little Lexie—"

"Oh that's so cute, little Lexie." Raven interrupted, receiving a scolding look from Lexa, she raised her hands in mock surrender and gestured to show that her lips were sealed.

"Continue Anya." Lexa demanded.

"Okay, it really is nothing I told them about you, we just had a pleasant conversation getting to know each other, then we had a lively discussion about pancakes and that's when you walked in, I'm not sure why we were laughing, I just know that something funny was said but I can't remember what."

"Why were you laughing a few minutes ago then?"

"Well it's just like a residual laugh, you know? When you laugh really hard at something and then you find yourself laughing every now and again afterwards." Anya somehow managed to stay eerily calm during her explanation but Lexa saw right through it, she knew there was something there and she knew well that she wouldn't get it out of Anya so she turned to Raven.

"Okay Reyes you're next, what's your explanation?"

Raven simply pointed to her mouth to show that her lips were still sealed so therefore she couldn't answer.

Anya giggled slightly next to her but schooled her expression when Lexa glared at her.

"Reyes you have my permission to speak again." Lexa honestly did find this situation funny but she couldn't let it show if she was going to get answers.

"Sorry Woods, I think the lack of oxygen from keeping my mouth shut for so long has caused some memory loss, I can't remember what we were laughing at either."

Lexa let out an exasperated sigh. "I never really expected you to give me an answer anyways so I'll move on, your turn Blake."

Octavia visibly gulped, a look of panic flashed in her eyes but then an idea formed in her mind and within seconds she was forcing pancakes into her mouth until it was entirely full. She attempted to smile but it proved to be too difficult.

Lexa chuckled, too amused by her friends antics to stay serious. She took her seat again and turned to face Clarke, she didn't give Clarke the same stern look she gave her other friends instead she gave her a soft smile. "I know if I asked you would tell me the truth but I can see that whatever these fools are laughing at seems to be making you uncomfortable so you don't have to tell me what happened. Instead I would like to apologize on their behalf to you so Clarke these three asses are very sorry for causing you any discomfort." She takes Clarke's hand and gives it a gentle squeeze.

"Thanks Lex." Clarke gave her a huge smile and Lexa mirrored it.

"Do you two want us to go while you have your moment or what?" Raven asked causing both girls to blush and avert their gaze down towards their own plates, until they both heard a smacking noise and looked up to see Raven high-fiving both Octavia and Anya at the same time.

"I am seriously never making pancakes for any of you ever again, only Lexa gets my pancakes." Clarke stated.

"Need I remind you that that's exactly what landed you in this situation in the first place." Octavia responded.

"Well look who's able to speak again." Lexa said threateningly.

Octavia immediately shoved more pancakes into her mouth.

"Special." Anya said, knowing only Clarke would understand why she was saying it.

  

* * *

 

After breakfast they continued talking for a while getting to know each other better while Lexa tried to stop Anya from telling them any embarrassing stories about her.

"I do have another reason for being here." Anya stood up and moved to put some distance between her and her cousin. "Remember there are witnesses here Lexa so you can't murder me."

"Why would I murder you? What did you do?"

"I just need you to promise you won't freak out when I tell you."

"Anya...." Lexa warned.

"Just promise asshole."

"Fine, I promise."

"So you remember how we didn't really get a lot of time to hang out when you were last home because I had some stuff to take care of?"

"Yeah Linc said you had some trouble at work....Oh god did you punch a customer again?"

"No, that was one time Lex and he deserved it."

"I like this girl already." Raven interrupted.

"Well the thing is I was offered a job here in Arkadia and I took it."

"Oh my god, you're moving here?"

"Yup there's a little more to the story though."

"What is it?"

"Lincoln's moving here too."

"What?! Both of you? here?"

"Uh yeah, is that okay?" Anya asked warily.

"Okay? It's fantastic."

"There's still one more thing."

"Alright....?"

"We found an apartment just three blocks from here so yeah me and Linc are moving to Arkadia and we'll be living a stone's throw away from here."

Lexa was speechless. It was so much to take in at once. 

"Looks like we'll be seeing each other a lot, huh?" Raven asked with a grin.

Anya smirked. "Guess so, yeah."

"Lex you doing okay?" Clarke asked when she noticed that Lexa was now frowning.

"Why?" Lexa asked Anya.

"Why what?"

"Why are you moving here? It's not because of me is it?"

Anya sighed. "Of course it's because of you."

"Anya you can't just uproot your life because you want to protect me, I'm doing great here, you don't have to do this."

"That's not....we didn't....ugh damn it you're gonna make me say it." Anya shook her head frustrated that she'd have to speak about feelings now. "We're not moving here because we feel like we have to protect you, we know you're capable of surviving on your own."

"Then why?"

"Because you're not just our family Lex, you're our best friend. You were our whole world for two years and then you came here and we missed you, okay? We want to be here because we want to be able to see you and hang out with you whenever we want." 

"So you're coming here because you miss having me as a friend?"

"Yes but don't make a big deal out of it."

"You love me." Lexa teased.

"Shut up, you're family I have to love you, it's like a rule or something." Anya replied weakly.

"You love me as a friend too though, you think I'm cool and fun to be with."

"Keep this up and I won't think you're cool or fun anymore."

"Fine, I miss having you two as friends too."

"Well we're awesome why wouldn't you miss us?"

"I'm telling Lincoln you called him awesome."

"Don't you dare."

"Why shouldn't I?"

"I have plenty of stories I can tell these three about you." Anya said menacingly.

Lexa's eyes widened. "Okay no need to do anything drastic, I won't tell Lincoln anything."

"Good." Anya finally sat back down, feeling safer knowing Lexa wasn't angry at her. "I'm going to see the restaurant in a few minutes, wanna come with me?"

"Sure."

"Any of you want to come with us?" Anya asked the three others.

"Nah I think you two should have some time alone." Clarke said, not wanting to intrude on their time together any more than they already had. 

 

* * *

 

Not long after that they said their goodbyes to the three others.

Before they left Lexa leaned over and tenderly kissed Clarke on her temple.

Clarke blushed profusely at the unexpected but not unwelcome kiss and bit her lip.

Lexa realizing what she had done quickly pulled back, she managed to squeak out a goodbye before dashing out of the apartment ahead of her smirking cousin who waved at the three before following her out of the apartment.

"What was that for?" Octavia asked as soon as the door closed.

Clarke put her hand on her temple, feeling where Lexa had just kissed her and smiled. "I don't know."

"One little kiss from Lexa and she's floating on cloud nine." Raven pointed out.

"Imagine how happy you would be if she had kissed you on the lips." Octavia added.

"Shut up." Clarke threw a dishcloth at Octavia. "Don't you two have some cleaning to do?"

Raven grabbed the TV remote. "Later, let's have a bit of a lazy day."

 

* * *

 

Anya waited until they were in the parking lot before she questioned what had just happened. "So....what's going on with you and blondie?"

Lexa shrugged. "We're friends."

"That kiss?"

Lexa knew exactly what Anya was trying to do. "What? That?" Lexa shrugged again trying to play innocent. "It was nothing, I was just saying goodbye."

"You didn't kiss Octavia or Raven."

"I can go back and kiss them now if you want." Lexa challenged.

Anya smirked, it was far too easy getting a rise out of her cousin. "Nope, that won't be necessary."

 

* * *

 

By the time they got to the restaurant Anya considered herself to be an expert on all things Clarke. Lexa never seemed to stop listing off everything and anything she could think of about the blonde, from the many different shades of blue her eyes were depending on when and where she is when you look at them to a very detailed description of how Clarke's brow creases when she's drawing. Anya was sure Lexa didn't even realize how much she was revealing about her true feelings, it seemed like Lexa was using her as a sounding board to list the many, many things she adored about the blonde. She had to admit she quite liked Clarke, she could tell that this girl cared deeply for her cousin, she had already helped Lexa be more open and most importantly she made Lexa happy.

"You know how I'd never approve of anyone until you're married to them?" Anya asked once Lexa finally finished speaking.

"Yeah?"

"So you know it would be a huge deal for me to like them before that?"

"What are you talking about Anya?" 

"Clarke. I like her, she has my approval."

"We're not together Anya."

"No but you want to be."

"Anya we're friends, nothing more to it."

"Bullshit you're falling for her."

Lexa rubbed her forehead, growing frustrated with this conversation, her feelings for Clarke became more intense with each passing day and she was struggling to keep them to herself. "Can we talk about something else please?"

"Fine." Anya may have been determined to find out about Lexa's feelings but she knew pushing her cousin too much and too soon could result in Lexa closing herself off again, she wasn't willing to risk that right now. "How many others are there?"

"What?"

"How many more people do you talk to?" Anya asked as she stopped the car and got out, soon followed by Lexa.

"Oh well there's Jasper, Monty, Miller, Bryan, Bellamy, Clarke's mom Abby and her boyfriend Marcus who is one of my teachers and a couple of people in my classes."

Lexa was surprised when her cousin pulled her into a tight hug. "I'm so glad you're opening up to people Lex, I've missed seeing you so relaxed and happy but what made you want to do this?"

"Honestly? They were all so understanding, they accepted me as I was, loved me the way I was and always made sure I felt included. I trust them, I have since I met them so I wanted them to know the real me."

Anya nodded in understanding, she was glad Lexa had found such great people. "Clarke was the first, right?"

"Yeah, I needed Clarke to be the first, we....she gets me, I don't really know how to explain it, she just needed to hear me first."

Anya nodded in understanding. "I'm glad you found her.

Lexa grinned. "Me too."

* * *

"Are you coming back up?" Lexa asked as they pulled into the car park of her apartment complex.

"Nah I better get back to Polis I've got work in the morning."

"Alright well I'll see you soon?"

"Yeah I'll be back in a few days and Linc will be finishing up his last few days of work at the gym this week so he'll be moving here first."

"I still can't believe I'll have you both here."

"It's going to be great and it's going to be a lot of fun getting to know your new friends."

"That sounds dangerous."

"Don't worry, I'll behave." Anya actually sounded like she was being honest which settled Lexa's worries, for now. "They're helping you." Anya said seriously.

"Hmm?" Lexa hummed.

"You're smiling and laughing, you're the old Lexa again or maybe a new Lexa with all the best qualities of old Lexa. It's really great seeing you so happy and carefree, I've really missed this version of you."

"It feels good being able to be myself again." Lexa admitted.

"Keep them close Lex, they're good for you."

 

* * *

"Hey." Clarke sat up more fully in her chair and greeted her with a smile.

Lexa smiled and shook her head at the sight in front of her, it looked as though none of them had moved the entire time she was gone. "Every time I leave, no matter how long I'm gone for you're always in the same position when I get back."

"That's because our whole world revolves around you Woods, we just don't know what to do when you're not here." 

"How'd it go?" Octavia asked.

"Great, the restaurant is gorgeous."

"What restaurant is it?"

"A place called the Ark."

Raven whistled. "Fancy place."

"Well known here?"

"It's one of the swankiest restaurants in Arkadia, Anya must be one hell of a good chef."

"She is, she taught me most of what I know."

Raven prodded Octavia's leg with her foot to get her attention. "You know what that means, right?"

"What?"

"Another person to cook for us."

"Damn we're so lucky."

Lexa chuckled. "I need coffee, anyone else want some?"

The three others raised their hands.

"I'll help." Clarke stood up and followed Lexa into the kitchen. "So....?"

"So?" Lexa asked raising an eyebrow.

"You just got some pretty major and incredible news, how are you feeling about it?"

"I kind of still can't believe it. My life here just keeps on getting better and better."

Clarke wrapped her arms around Lexa and gave her a tight hug. "I'm so happy for you Lex."

Lexa sighed happily. "I never asked how you felt about all this?"

"Me?"

"Yeah, how do you feel about the idea of my cousins hanging around all the time?"

"Honestly?" Clarke waited for Lexa to nod before she continued. "I'm excited about it. You were so much happier after you started speaking, now with this happening I think it'll just make everything even better and I like Anya she seems fun."

"She is but she can be a real pain in the ass sometimes too, she likes to try to embarrass me as much as she can, did she tell you any embarrassing stories before I got here?"

"Nah you got lucky this time we just introduced ourselves."

"She trusts you by the way, I don't know how you managed that because Anya is probably the most skeptical person ever, she's more of a guilty until proven innocent kind of person but you earned her trust."

"Like I said before we have a way of getting the Woods family to open up to us."

 

* * *

 

After Lexa's little slip kissing Clarke before she left with Anya, Clarke decided to take a risk kissing Lexa on the cheek whenever she returned to or left the apartment.

At first it had surprised Lexa but she quickly became accustomed to getting a kiss from Clarke whenever she went anywhere, even going as far as to take every opportunity she got to leave just to get more kisses. Over time she became more confident trading kiss for kiss with Clarke, it hadn't gone unnoticed by Octavia or Raven who had promptly informed Abby who was overjoyed to hear that they had taken another step closer to becoming a couple.

 

* * *

 

 _A few days later._  

"Hi, I'm um looking for Lexa Woods."

Clarke smiled warmly at the man. "You must be Lincoln, Lex told me all about you. I'm Clarke."

"Nice to meet you Clarke. She told me all about you too."

"Only good things I hope?"

"From what I've heard there is nothing but good things to say about you."

Clarke blushed slightly. "I could say the same about you."

"So is my cousin around?"

"Lex is across the hall in O and Raven's apartment, come with me, she'll be so happy to see you."

Lincoln stopped Clarke before she walked out of the apartment. "Umm Clarke could we talk for a minute before we go over there?"

"Uh sure take a seat." Clarke moved over to the couch, followed by Lincoln.

"I just want to thank you for being so good to Lexa. She's really happy since she met you and we've all missed seeing her like that."

"I'm glad that I could make her happy."

"You're special to her Clarke, I can tell from the way she speaks about you."

"You're the second member of Lexa's family to say that to me, I guess it must be true." Clarke chuckled.

Lincoln looked confused.

"Anya." Clarke clarified.

"Oh right that would be Anya. I'm not like Anya I'm not trying to be nosy or pushy I just felt like I needed to thank you, I'm sorry if I'm coming off as intrusive."

"It's okay Lincoln, Lexa told me all about you, remember? I know you're not like that and Lexa's really special to me too, I promise I will always do my very best to make sure she feels safe and happy."

Lincoln had a big beaming smile on his face. "Glad to hear it."

"Ready to head over now?"

"Sure."

Clarke led the way over to the other apartment, when she opened the door they were greeted by the sight of Octavia and Raven wrestling on the couch for control of the TV remote while Lexa was sitting in the armchair closest to the door watching the two battle it out. "Look who I found."

Lexa turned to find Clarke and Lincoln standing by the door. "Linc!" she exclaimed jumping up from her seat and embracing her cousin.

"Hey Lex, I missed you."

"Missed you too."

Octavia momentarily stopped fighting, her attention now fully focused on the new person in the room, giving Raven the opportunity to win but instead she imitated Octavia's voice and teased her. "Oh I see how it is, you see a pretty boy and forget all about me."

Octavia shoved her lightly and let go of the remote before jumping up to greet their guest. "Hey I'm Octavia, nice to meet you." She held out her hand to him.

Lincoln took her hand and gingerly shook it, Lexa noticed he looked uncharacteristically shy. "I'm Lincoln, nice to meet you too."

The two stood frozen, staring at each other, still grasping each others hands. 

A throat clearing startled them both, breaking the moment. "I'm Raven, good to meet you Lincoln."

"Nice meeting you too." He shook Raven's hand, letting go in a more timely manner this time. "So you're the genius and you're the one keeping my cousin in shape."

"Aw you told him about us?" Octavia asked.

"Of course, why wouldn't I?"

"We just assumed that whenever you speak about Arkadia it's mostly Griff you speak about." Raven explained.

"There is some truth to that." Lincoln commented.

Lexa gave him a warning look. "I think you've been spending too much time with Anya."

 

* * *

 

"At least I'm able to beat one Woods." Octavia stated proudly having just come in second place in their race, she high-fived Lexa as she walked past her to enter their apartment building.

Lincoln blushed, he tried to rush past Lexa before she could question how he had come in last place but she was quick enough to put her arm out in front of him stopping him from entering the building. "Don't think I didn't notice what was keeping you in last place Lincoln."

Lincoln ducked his head hiding the guilty look on his face.

"It seems you found staring at O's ass more important than winning."

"I....sorry."

"Look I'm not going to stop you if you want to ask her out but if you're planning to do that please be sure it's not just a fling before you do, I don't want things to be awkward if it doesn't work out."

Lincoln looked relieved. "Alright Lex, I won't ask her out until I'm sure it's the right thing to do."

"Thanks Linc."

 

* * *

 

A couple of days later Lincoln took Lexa aside and promised her he was sure Octavia and him could work as a couple and he wanted to pursue a relationship with her. Lexa, knowing Lincoln was an honest guy, gave him her blessing. He opened the apartment door and Lexa went back inside. 

"Octavia?" Lincoln called from the doorway. "Could I talk to you real quick?"

Octavia shrugged. "Sure." She got up and went out into the hallway.

A few minutes later they both came back into the apartment.

Lexa could tell by the smiles on their faces that Octavia had said yes, she was happy that they were going on a date.

Octavia started putting the pieces together when she saw Lexa subtly give Lincoln a thumbs up. "Did you ask Lexa for permission before you asked me out?"

"Umm kind of, yeah." Lincoln admitted timidly.

"That is....adorable." Octavia looked between the two cousins with a big grin showing. "You're seriously okay with us going on a date?" She asked Lexa.

"As long as you're both happy that's all that matters to me."

Octavia wrapped Lexa up in a bone crushing hug. "You're the best Lex." She pressed a sloppy wet kiss to Lexa's cheek.

"Save the kisses for her cousin O." Clarke stated.

"Someone's jealousy is showing." Raven said just loud enough for Clarke to hear.

"Think I can mange that." Octavia moved back over to Lincoln, pulled him close and gave him a chaste kiss.

"Now I'm starting to regret giving you my approval."

"Too late to change your mind now." Octavia cheekily responded.

* * *

 _A couple of days later._

The door opened to reveal a confused looking Raven. "You knocked, why'd you knock?"

"To make my presence known?" Anya said her confusion was obvious.

"Not what I meant, we're not the sort of people who knock, mostly because we're too lazy to get off our asses and open the door, so next time just come in, no need to knock."

"You know anyone could walk in at any time, right? Like a creepy chainsaw-wielding murderer or any other kind of psycho."

Raven shrugged nonchalantly. "We would outnumber them and we're all capable of kicking ass if we need to, your cousin more than the rest of us, which reminds me I have a video you'll want to see."

 

* * *

It was late, Lincoln and Octavia were out in the hallway saying goodnight, Raven had left to get some sleep about a half hour before, Anya was still in Lexa and Clarke's apartment helping Lexa clean up and Clarke was fast asleep on the couch. 

Lexa slipped out of the kitchen while Anya was drying the dishes to get a blanket for Clarke.

Anya had seen Lexa walking past the kitchen doorway carrying the blanket, she stuck her head out of the doorway to see what her cousin was up to, she was glad she did when she saw Lexa press a gentle kiss to Clarke's forehead after covering her with the blanket.

Lexa turned to see her cousin watching her. She knew she couldn't run from Anya so she went back into the kitchen and acted like nothing had happened.

Unfortunately for Lexa Anya wasn't willing to ignore what she had just seen. "She's good for you Lex."

"I don't know what you're talking about."

"Oh yes you do, why won't you just tell her how you feel?"

Lexa huffed, annoyed that her cousin wouldn't just let it be. "Love is weakness."

"Oh that's bullshit and you know it."

Lexa crossed her arms and sighed. "I'm not good for her Ahn, she deserves better."

"You need to realize you are the best Lexa and Clarke sees that. I can tell you now that girl isn't going to just give up on you, she'll wait however long it takes for you to get your head out of your ass."

"It's been a good day, can we please not end it in an argument?"

"Fine." Anya would drop it for now but she knew that sooner or later they would have to have this talk.

* * *

Raven and Anya had gotten close since Anya had moved in, everyone noticed it, they didn't think anything was going on with them yet but there was definitely an attraction between them. There were small things like little touches here and there, the biggest clue was when they had been laying around watching TV and Anya had started removing Raven's brace without even looking away from the TV once, Raven hadn't looked away either like it wasn't unexpected for Anya to do that.

Lexa knew there was no way to approach the subject of Anya and Raven's relationship without Anya getting defensive and asking her about her relationship with Clarke so she just had to trust that her cousin had thought this through and had decided, like Lincoln had, that it was the right thing to do.

 

* * *

 

Raven and Anya had planned to meet at a cafe just far enough from the college that they were unlikely to bump into any of their friends.. Raven had come straight from class having told the others she had to stay behind to get some more work done, they knew she was lying but no one said anything about it to her. As she was getting closer to the cafe she could see Anya outside speaking to someone, it only took a few more steps forward for her to see who it was. Her blood boiled seeing the smug arrogant boy who she despised clearly trying to seduce Anya.

"Back off Finn." Raven practically growled.

"This isn't any of your business Raven."

"She's my friend so yes it is."

Finn looked at them both as though he was trying to figure something out. "Oh I see." He smirked. "You've got a little crush on this friend of yours." Finn started laughing obnoxiously.

"What's so funny Finn?"

"She's not ever going to want you, you're damaged goods, who wou—" Finn was abruptly cut off by a punch so powerful it turned him slightly before he fell to the floor.

Raven looked at Anya in shock, she didn't know she was that strong.

Anya stood over him. "Don't you dare call her damaged goods. She is the best person I have ever met and her injury doesn't make her any less amazing it's physical proof of just how strong she is, this woman is better than any of us could ever hope to be, you are pig shit in comparison to her." Anya turned to face a stunned Raven and took her hand. "Oh and if you ever come near her again I'll set my cousin on you, I'm sure she'd be happy to make you shit your pants again." When Finn looked at her with shock and disgust she smirked. "That's right asshole, I've seen the video and I will gladly show it to every woman on this campus if you come near any of my family or friends ever again." With that she turned and walked away gently pulling a bewildered Raven along with her.

Raven waited until Anya slowed down a little before she spoke. "So that was really,  _really_  hot."

Anya halted and turned to face Raven with an unreadable expression. She placed her hands on either side of Raven's face and quickly closed the distance between them.

Raven was momentarily stunned but quickly caught on to what was happening.

The kiss was passionate at first, full of want and need but soon slowed and became more gentle.

When they finally broke apart Anya rested her forehead against Raven's and said. "I'd like to take you on a date."

"Okay." Raven responded a little dazed and breathless.

 

* * *

 

Later as they recounted the tale, excluding some personal details, Lexa had moved to stand in front of Clarke protectively as soon as Finn's name had been mentioned, by the time they had told them everything about their encounter Lexa was seething.

"Breathe Lex, he's not here." Clarke said, soothingly running her hands up and down Lexa arms trying to relieve some of the tension.

"Wow you just went full Heda." Anya stated with a frown, it had been a while since she had seen her cousin get so worked up.

"Wait, what's Heda?"

"Lexa's nickname, we use it when she gets scarily overprotective it's sort of the equivalent of the commander which is kind of a cool coincidence."

"What language is that?" Clarke hurriedly asked.

"Trigadeslang, we made it up when we were kids." Anya answered a little confused about Clarke's urgency.

"Well how the hell was I supposed to figure out what Skai Prisa means when it's in a language I didn't know existed?"

"Skai Prisa?" Anya repeated in a teasing tone.

Lexa glared at Anya. "Shof op."

"What does it mean?" Clarke directed the question at Anya hoping she would be willing to tell her.

"Anya don't you dare." The warning was clear in Lexa's tone.

Anya silently analyzed her cousin's current mood and knew now wasn't a time to mess with her. "Fine, secrets safe for now."

"Can you at least give me a clue?" Clarke pleaded.

"Nope figure it out Clarke." Anya responded with a smirk.

"Griff private chat?" Raven interrupted.

"Okay....?"

Raven led them to Clarke's old room, as soon as the door closed Raven handed her phone to Clarke. "Since Anya is on Lexa's side, I can be on yours." Raven stated with a wicked grin. "O got Lincoln to blab."

Clarke looked down at her phone and saw the text conversation between Raven and Octavia on her phone.

 **Raven (18:13)**  
**O I need a favour, I need you to get Lincoln to tell you what skypreza means.**

 **Octavia (18:16)**  
**Done.**  

 **Raven (18:17)**  
**That was quick.**

 **Octavia (18:17)**  
**I didn't give him much of a choice.**

 **Raven (18:18)**  
**Hope you didn't hurt him too much.**

 **Octavia (18:19)**  
**Just a hit to his pride anyways skai prisa means sky princess.**

"Sky princess." Clarke read out the meaning.

"Cute, right?"

"Mmhmm." Clarke hummed. "I get the princess part but why the sky part?"

"Who knows? Woods that's who and only he would know."

"Raven...." Clarke narrowed her eyes. "What do you know?"

"Nothing, why would I know anything?" Raven said suspiciously.

"You look like you're hiding something."

"Fine." Raven relented. "She may or may not have mentioned once or twice that your eyes remind her of the sky but she thinks your eyes are even more beautiful than a crystal clear sky and yes there is so much more that she said but I won't say any more than that."

Clarke grinned. "She said that?"

"Yes but if you tell her I blabbed I will end you."

"I won't say a word about it."

"Good. You gonna tell her you know what the name means?"

Clarke grinned mischievously. "Nah I think I'll let her think she's fooling me for a little longer."

* * *

Lexa remembered what Clarke had said about wanting to see her between classes even if it was just for a few seconds which is why she was now speed walking towards Clarke hoping to catch her before she entered the classroom she was walking towards. She caught her just before she entered the room, she wrapped her hand around Clarke's arm and pulled her back gently.

Clarke quickly realized who was pulling her back and she smiled. She wrapped her arms around Lexa's neck and pulled her close.

Lexa smiled sweetly at Clarke. "Hi."

"Hey, what's up?"

"I just wanted to spend a little time with you, even if it's just a few seconds."

"You remember what I said."

"I make it a point to remember everything you say."

Clarke beamed. "You're a big softy, you know?"

"Shh don't tell anyone it'll ruin my badass reputation, you're the only one that gets to see my softer side."

"Good, I like being the only one that gets to see parts of you like this."

The two of them just stood there staring adoringly at each other for a brief moment.

Lexa moved in closer, resting her forehead against Clarke's, their noses just barely touching and sighed. "You have to go to class Clarke."

"You kind of have me pinned here." Clarke pointed out, her voice breathy. 

"Do you want me to move?"

"No." Clarke whispered, gripping Lexa's hips, pulling her even closer.

Lexa let out a quiet hum of approval.

"As hot as this is you're both going to be late for class if you don't separate." Raven's voice broke up their little moment.

"And you should know you've got an audience." Octavia added.

Lexa reluctantly pulled back and the two of them looked around at the small crowd obviously watching them.

"Shows over folks go find something else to gawk at." Raven yelled causing all the onlookers to hurriedly look away and go about their business. "You two get to class."

"Actually I don't have a class now it was cancelled." Lexa informed them.

"Oh come hang out with us, we're meeting up with Lincoln in a few minutes." Octavia excitedly suggested.

"Okay."

Clarke pouted. "I'm the only one that doesn't get to have any fun."

"Just one more class and you'll be done for the day."

"Maybe I could skip?"

"Your education is important." Lexa leaned in and kissed her cheek. "I'll be here when you're done."

"M'kay." A small smile appeared on Clarke's face.

"See you soon Clarke."

Clarke entered the classroom just before her professor. Clarke felt a tap on her shoulder, she turned around expecting to find Lexa there but instead found it was her professor. "Miss Griffin may I speak to you after class?"

Clarke nodded, a confused expression on her face.

He smiled kindly at her which eased some of her worries. "Okay, go ahead and get settled."

 

* * *

 

"That was ridiculously hot." Raven said to Lexa.

"So steamy." Octavia fanned herself with her hand.

"It was an innocent....embrace." Lexa stated awkwardly unsure how to describe what had just occurred.

"Oh there was nothing innocent about that, if we hadn't stopped you two I have no doubt you two would've started shedding your clothes pretty soon." Raven smirked.

Lexa rolled her eyes. "We weren't that bad."

"There's a reason you had an audience." Octavia countered.

"You two seem to think everything we do is flirty."

Raven made a disbelieving noise. "That's because most of the time it is."

"Just for future reference maybe don't get Clarkey all hot and bothered and then send her off to class."

"Poor Griff is probably squirming in her seat right now."

Lexa blushed at the idea of having gotten Clarke flustered, she decided not to comment hoping Octavia and Raven would lose interest and change the subject.

 

* * *

 

"So that was your muse you were with in the corridor?" The professor asked when Clarke appeared at his desk after class.

"Oh um that's my roommate and my friend."

"You don't have to cover it up for my sake Miss Griffin, I know true love when I see it." He smiled fondly at her. "Not that it's any of my business and I apologize if I'm overstepping my boundaries here but I wanted to tell you to hold on to her, finding your muse is not something all artists get to experience but you have and it shows in your work it's much more vibrant now. She has lit a fire in you." Clarke hadn't noticed until then that he had one of her folders open on his desk. "I'm speaking from experience, I was lucky enough to meet my muse thirty-two years ago and we've been married for thirty-one years. Tell me, what do you think about when you start a new painting?"

Clarke didn't have to think about the answer. "I wonder if Lexa will like this."

"Do you find yourself paying closer attention to details, making sure everything is absolutely perfect?"

"Yes."

"I could tell from the difference in your older works to your more recent ones, do you see it?"

Clarke looked closer at the two paintings on the professor's desk. "Oh i do." Clarke was clearly surprised that she could see it so plainly. "I didn't think it would be such a drastic difference."

"Love fuels creativity Miss Griffin, this is clear proof of that."

 

* * *

 

As promised Lexa was waiting in the corridor for her when she exited the classroom. She immediately perked up when she saw Clarke. "Hey, how was class?" Lexa offered her arm to Clarke who happily wrapped her arm around it.

"It was enlightening."

"Glad you didn't skip?"

"Yes but I'm still sad I didn't get to hang out with you."

"Well I'm all yours now." Lexa smiled kindly. "Linc, O and Raven are down at the arcade, do you want to join them or do you want to go home?"

"Let's join them."

"Alright, you can leave your bag in my car."

 

* * *

 

While Lincoln and Lexa were going nuts playing time crisis Clarke decided to try her luck on one of the old claw machines. She spotted a toy she thought would be perfect for Lexa, she was determined to get it. After a few failed attempts Raven came by and helped her.

"Striking resemblance to the commander." Raven commented when Clarke pulled the toy out of the machine.

Clarke made her way back to Lexa just as her and Lincoln started to move away from the machine. "I got you something."

"Really?"

Clarke nodded, pulled the toy out from behind her back and handed it to Lexa.

Lexa examined the cute raccoon soft toy with a soft smile on her face.

"It's like the animal equivalent of the commander." Clarke pointed out to her. "Like it?"

"I love it, thank you." Lexa pressed a gentle kiss to Clarke's cheek. "Where'd you get it?"

"Claw machine over there." Clarke pointed in it's general direction behind her.

"Let's go get you one."

"Yeah?"

Lexa nodded.

"Okay."

They decided on a little lion soft toy for Clarke. She was glad that she wasn't the only one that found it difficult to grab the toy, it really seemed to be frustrating Lexa that she couldn't get it, thankfully Raven saved the day again. Clarke and Lexa spent the rest of their time in the arcade strolling around arm in arm watching their friends battle it out on various machines while they tried to come up with names for their little soft toys.

In the end Clarke had chosen Commander Coon as the name of Lexa's raccoon pointing out the similarities between the commander and commander coon, Lexa had decided they should name Clarke's lion Wanheda and quickly explained that it meant commander of death which seemed fitting since it was a lion.

 

* * *

 

Anya and Raven came clean two days previous about them dating so Lexa thought it was time she had a little talk with her two friends.

"You two know what this is right?"

When the two girls responded 'no' in unison Lexa clarified it for them. "Linc and Anya are more than cousins to me, they're more like my siblings."

"Oh shit I think we're about to get the talk from the commander." Raven nearly yelled.

"I'm honestly a little scared. I can't help but think that the commander's talk would involve a preview of what will happen if we screw up."

Lexa cleared her throat reminding them that she had something to say.

"Sorry Lex, continue." Octavia sat up straight ready to listen to what Lexa had to say.

"I'll get straight to the point." She crossed her arms and the two looked a little nervous. "If they're going to be with anyone I'm glad it's you two but if you hurt them I will have to be a little tough on you, I'll be equally as tough on them if they hurt you though."

There was a beat of silence between them before Raven broke it. "So what I'm hearing is we're just as important to you as they are?"

"Yes." Lexa responded without hesitation.

"Aww you lurve us." Octavia cooed.

"You wanna protect our hearts." Raven said in a teasing singsong manner.

"You want us to be happy." Octavia said in the same teasing tone.

"Stop it."

"But we're family it's our job to tease you." Octavia pointed out.

"Need I remind you that I am the commander? The commander is not someone you should tease."

There was a moment of complete silence which made Lexa think she had won and they were giving up on teasing her.

"Oh my god she just called herself the commander." They both erupted in loud laughter.

"I can't fucking breathe." Octavia wheezed.

"Oh jesus Imagine Clarke calling her that in bed." Raven barely managed to get the words out through her laughter. 

Lexa wasn't sure if she was glad of the distraction when Clarke walked in only a minute later, on the one hand she was spared from any further embarrassment but on the other hand she now had very vivid images of Clarke's breathy voice saying the nickname in a moment of deep intimacy playing through her mind, she did have to admit it was kind of a turn on.

 

* * *

 

They were making a plan of action to get all their Christmas shopping done that weekend, they had all agreed not to buy each other gifts, they would only be buying presents for their families. As soon as Clarke left the room Raven turned to Lexa and said "you're still gonna get Clarke a present, right?"

"Yes." Lexa blurted out and then slapped a hand over her mouth.

All her friends chuckled at her reaction.

"Relax Commander we already knew you would get her something."

Lexa let out a sigh of relief. "I actually already got it, I just need to collect it, do you guys want to see a picture of it?"

"Hell yeah let's see." Octavia reached out and Lexa passed her the phone.

"She's gonna love it." Raven commented leaning over Octavia to see the image.

"You sure?"

"Well it's from you, it's incredibly thoughtful and it's something she will definitely use so yeah I'd say she will squeal like a little kid when she sees it." Octavia reassured her.

Lexa nodded but still looked doubtful.

"Hey Lex, this is perfect for Clarke and you know it, something inside you told you that this is what Clarkey would want, trust yourself, you've picked a great present."

 

* * *

 

It wasn't until their last week before they went back to Polis for the holidays that Lincoln and Anya were able to meet Abby and by then they knew she had been informed that they were dating Octavia and Raven which only made them more nervous about meeting the woman since they knew Abby was a parent to both girls as well as Clarke.

Lexa had told them that she had brought cheesecake the first time she went to Abby's house so Anya had decided to make an apple pie and Lincoln had bought a bouquet of flowers for her that Octavia helped him pick.

They had been told to relax by all the girls, Lexa knew they wouldn't though, just like her they would fret until they had Abby's approval, Lincoln more so than Anya.

When they arrived they followed the four girls into the kitchen, both admiring how happy Lexa looked wrapped up in the little group hug.

When they all separated Abby took a moment to analyse the two new faces in the room. "I assume this is Anya and Lincoln?" She asked Lexa.

"Yes, this is them."

"Nice to meet you both."

"Nice to meet you too ma'am." Lincoln said politely.

"Uh we brought you these." Anya awkwardly held out the pie and Lincoln held out the flowers.

"Coached them a little bit, did we?" Abby asked, amusement clear in her voice.

Raven and Octavia looked away, guilty expressions planted on their faces.

"Well thank you, that's very nice of you both."

 

* * *

 

"Okay so let's get everyone out to the table except you Lexa, you stick with me for a little while, okay?"

"Sure."

Once the five others left the room Abby turned to Lexa with a mischievous grin. "How much do you want to mess with your cousins?"

Lexa smiled. "A lot, Anya more than Lincoln."

"I think they should be feeling a little paranoid right now."

"Oh that's why you wanted me to stay in here." Lexa chuckled.

"Umhmm they'll think I'm grilling you for information on them, any objections to doing this?"

"Nope, I've never had this much power over them, I think I'll enjoy it while it lasts."

 

* * *

 

After dinner Abby sent Octavia, Raven and Clarke into the kitchen to clean up leaving her, Lexa, Anya and Lincoln alone at the table.

"So Lexa do we trust them?" 

"I don't know if I should stake my reputation on them." Lexa felt a hard boot hit her leg under the table which caused her to yelp. "Jesus Anya I was just kidding."

"We're trying to make a good impression here." Anya whisper yelled as though that would prevent Abby from hearing.

"And the best way to do that is through violence?" Abby asked in a motherly tone.

"No! Oh god no of course not." Anya's eyes widened comically thinking Abby wouldn't like her now. "I'm sorry Lexa I shouldn't have done that."

Lexa chuckled. "If she behaves this well around you maybe I should move in here, I'd never have to worry about her teasing me ever again."

"You realize I'm older than you right? You're talking about me like I'm a child."

"You act like a child."

"Stop making me look bad."

"When are you gonna get it Anya?"

"Get what?"

"We're messing with you." Abby informed her. 

Anya's brow furrowed. "What?"

"Lexa's family is our family, you two passed the test just by being related to her and she has told me wonderful things about you both so I already like you."

"Oh." Lincoln simply stated.

"So what now then?" Anya asked.

"Now you tell me that I can trust you to look after my girls and never hurt them."

Lincoln nodded in affirmation. "Of course we'll look after them."

"Definitely safe with us." Anya agreed.

"Now you two relax and stop trying to impress me, you've done enough to convince me that letting you into our family is a good decision, alright?"

"Yes ma'am." Lincoln responded.

"Please stop calling me ma'am, call me Abby or whatever you want but never call me ma'am."

"Okay."

"Girls you can stop eavesdropping now." Abby yelled in the direction of the kitchen.

"Finally." Raven pushed the kitchen door open and walked into the room followed closely by Octavia.

"Where's Clarke?"

"She's dealing with the dishes." Octavia said as she wrapped her arms around her boyfriend.

"I'll go help her." Lexa said, earning herself knowing looks from everyone around her before she left the room. "Hey."

"Hi, is the interrogation over?" Clarke asked while loading the dishwasher.

"Yup, I thoroughly enjoyed seeing Anya so nervous, she's not usually one to panic in situations like that, actually she would be a great actress."

Clarke chuckled. "Your somewhat scary cousin intimidated by my mother, who would've thought that would happen?"

"Well I could see it happening, I was pretty terrified the first time I came here."

"Really?"

"Yeah."

"Why? Mom loved you before she even met you."

"Yeah but I didn't know that for sure and I didn't want to mess up. Even back then you were so important to me so I really wanted Abby to like me but I was worried the whole no talking thing would hold me back, I knew it wouldn't because you three were so understanding about it and the letter she sent me but there was still a little bit of doubt." Lexa admitted. "But then she was so accepting just like all of you were and it just amazed me that your family was even real."

"Can I ask you something?"

"Sure."

"The first time we came here when you couldn't, when we got back you touched my arm before you went for your shower, like this," Clarke reenacted the move "It felt significant for some reason I was just wondering why?"

Lexa took a moment to think about that day and how she had felt. "I guess I just needed to be sure you were really there, that you had come back, that the days we had spent together before that weren't just a figment of my imagination because you really did seem too perfect to be real. Sometimes I still have to remind myself that you are real, that this incredible new part of my life is real and it's all because of you."

Clarke's eyes began to fill with tears, she quickly moved towards Lexa and wrapped her up in a hug. "I'm amazed that you're real Lexa, that someone as pure as you even exists and I'm lucky enough to get to spend all my days with you. I don't know what I did to deserve you but every morning when I wake up next to you I thank the universe for bringing you into my life."

Lexa had tears building up in her eyes at Clarke's words, she tightened the embrace not ever wanting it to end.

Abby came in a few minutes later and smiled at the two still wrapped up in each other's arms, she subtly pulled out her phone and snapped a picture of the two who were oblivious to her presence. Finding the sight of the two so endearing she couldn't stop herself from going over to them and wrapping her arms around them both. She heard them both chuckle at the unexpected addition to their hug. When they all broke apart Abby put a hand on each one of their cheeks. "How are my girls doing?"

"We're good." Lexa responded with a content smile on her face.

"Perfect." Clarke stated with her own dopey grin.

"What inspired this little bonding moment?"

"We were just talking about the time we came here when Lexa couldn't and the first time she did come here."

"One of my favourite memories."

"Really?"

"Of course, I have many fond memories of you Lexa and I'm sure I'll have many more, the day I first met you will always be one of my favourites, it was the day I got to meet the person that brought happiness back into my little girls life, that is something I will never forget." 

"Funny, our conversation was kind of about how we've changed each other's lives, you weren't eavesdropping were you mom?"

"No but now I wish I was."

Lexa and Clarke both chuckled at Abby's clear disappointment having missed out on that conversation.

"Well I could definitely spend hours listing all of the incredible qualities Clarke has if that makes you feel any better."

"I have plenty of good things to say about this angel too."

Abby had never looked so pleased before. "Well I would be happy to listen to all of them while we all have a sneaky second dessert, how's that sound?"

"Like it'll be one of my favourite memories."

Clarke giggled. "You're so corny Lex."

Lexa blushed.

"It's one of the many cute things I adore about you." Clarke added easing Lexa's embarrassment before she placed a gentle kiss on her still slightly rosy cheek.

"I think I'm going to be a very happy mother by the end of this conversation." Abby muttered to herself as she started dishing up some more of the pie Anya had made.

 

* * *

 

"I am not cute Clarke."

"Oh please, you are freaking adorable, you're like a cute little woodland creature, you're like bambi level cute."

"I'm not." Lexa protested.

"Mom?"

"Sorry Lexa but I have to agree with Clarke you're adorable." Abby admitted.

Lexa huffed and crossed her arms doing her best to look displeased.

"So, so cute." Clarke pressed a kiss to Lexa's cheek.

Lexa couldn't stop herself from grinning at Clarke. "Fine, I'm a cute woodland animal and you, Clarke, are a pretty princess."

Clarke narrowed her eyes playfully.

"Funny you should call her a princess...." Abby said with a mischievous look.

"She knows about the name." Clarke informed her.

"Clarke Princess Griffin, a beautiful name for a beautiful woman." Lexa gave Clarke such an adoring look that it nearly took her breath away.

"I suppose it's not the worst name when it's said like that."

"That's a first, I've never heard you say anything positive about your name before." Abby's surprise was evident in her tone.

Clarke shrugged. "It's never sounded so nice."

  

* * *

  

They got away with their private gushing session for longer than expected, Abby's heart was overflowing with warmth and pure joy by the time the four others had come looking for them, Clarke and Lexa had spent the entire time unabashedly complimenting each other.

 

* * *

 

Anya and Lincoln were surprised when they were added to a group chat by Abby later that night. They quickly got an explanation of the clexa group chats purpose before Abby informed them all of what they had missed. 

**Abby (19:21)**  
**I got to witness a very special Clexa moment today.**

**Raven (19:21)**  
**What happened????**  

Abby sent them the photo of the two girls hugging in the kitchen. 

**Abby (19:22)**  
**When I left you guys I found them hugging in the kitchen, I asked them what the hug was for they were talking about the first time I met Lexa.**

**Octavia (19:23)**  
**Reminiscing about their past already, they're so cute.**

**Abby (19:23)**  
**It gets cuter....**

**Lincoln (19:24)**  
**Lexa's always been a big softy.**

**Anya (19:24)**  
**She's a sap.**

**Raven (19:24)**  
**She is both of those but so is Griff.**

**Abby (19:25)**  
**Well Clarke thought I might have heard their conversation but when I said I hadn't they agreed to spend some time listing the things they love about each other for me.**

**Octavia (19:26)**  
**How the hell are they still not together?!**

**Raven (19:27)**  
**Cause they're both oblivious idiots.**

**Abby (19:27)**  
**Be nice.**

**Anya (19:28)**  
**Lexa's just afraid that Clarke doesn't feel the same.**

**Lincoln (19:28)**  
**That does sound like Lexa.**

**Octavia (19:29)**  
**WHAT????!!!!**

**Raven (19:29)**  
**WTF???**

**Abby (19:30)**  
**I'm sorry but even I don't understand how she can think that Clarke doesn't feel the same especially after today.**

**Anya (19:31)**  
**Costia was her first and only girlfriend and she really hurt Lexa.**

**Raven (19:31)**  
**Clarke's not like Costia though.**

**Anya (19:32)**  
**Exactly, Clarke is far more of a risk than Costia ever was.**

**Abby (19:32)**  
**My daughter is not a risk.**

**Anya (19:33)**  
**Sorry let me explain, Lexa truly loved Costia but she never looked at Costia like she looks at Clarke.**

**Raven (19:34)**  
**Further explaining?**

**Anya (19:35)**  
**Lexa is super fucking in love with Clarke already and it terrifies her because if anything ever happened Clarke it would destroy her.**

**Lincoln (19:36)**  
**Heda's "don't get too attached" logic.**

**Octavia (19:36)**  
**But it's Clarke....**

**Lincoln (19:37)**  
**I think that's why she's letting herself get so close because it is Clarke and she does trust her so she's breaking her no.1 rule for her.**

**Abby (19:38)**  
**So what you're saying is she might be willing to take a chance because it's Clarke?**

**Lincoln (19:38)**  
**Yes, I think with a little more time she might finally give Clarke a chance.**

**Raven (19:39)**  
**Oh god that means we have to wait even longer.**

**Octavia (19:39)**  
**Can't you guys speak to her? She might listen to her wise cousins.**

**Anya (19:40)**  
**I've tried a few times.**

**Lincoln (19:40)**  
**Me too, I think Clarke will manage to change her mind.**

**Abby (19:41)**  
**I hope so because I will never want anyone other than Lexa to have my little girls heart.**

**Raven (19:42)**  
**Wow okay so basically Clarke marries Lexa or Clarke becomes a nun, I vote for the marriage even if it has to be a shotgun wedding.**

**Anya (19:43)**  
**I firmly believe that once they kiss Lexa won't be able to resist anymore so really we just need them to kiss.**

**Octavia (19:43)**  
**Can we just smush their faces together?**

**Raven (19:44)**  
**Or lock them in a room together and tell them they can't come out until they kiss?**

**Lincoln (19:45)**  
**Actually I don't think we need to do any of that Lexa's pretty close to breaking point.**

**Anya (19:46)**  
**Surprisingly I agree with Linc, Lexa already spends most of her time staring at Clarke's lips and a few of her other features, she's not too far from pouncing on her.**

**Raven (19:47)**  
**So is there anything we can do to push her over that line?**

**Anya (19:48)**  
**You could tell Clarke to flirt with her a little more, maybe wear certain outfits that highlight her assets around the apartment.**

**Abby (19:49)**  
**As her mother I can't approve of this but I can give you my approval to help Lexa in any way you can just don't ever tell me how.**

**Octavia (19:50)**  
**Are we Clarke's pimps? I feel like that's who we have become and as much as I want them to be together it's getting a little weird.**  

**Anya (19:51)**  
**None of us are anyone's pimps, look you've said Clarke wants to move things forward and is trying to so I know she'll be on board with this.**  

**Octavia (19:51)**  
**Fine we'll mention it and see what she thinks.**

 

* * *

 

It was a few days before the girls had the opportunity to tell Clarke about Anya's suggestions.

"So Anya thinks all it'll take is some more flirting and more revealing clothing to get Lexa to finally jump your bones, we said we would pass along the advice." Octavia explained.

"Is everyone involved in my love life now?" Clarke huffed.

"Well they've tried to talk about it with Lex but she keeps shutting them down."

"So are you going to try?" Raven asked.

"I will do what I feel comfortable doing, we're not discussing this further." 

"Fine be like that but if you need help figuring out what to wear let us know."

 

* * *

 

That is how Clarke ended up standing in the kitchen of their apartment wearing shorts and a crop top in the middle of December. Between the three of them they had decided Clarke would use the plan Raven had come up with back when Lexa first moved in to make the apartment unbearably hot which it really was thanks to Raven tampering with the heating, now Clarke just had to wait for Lexa to come back, find her in her somewhat revealing outfit and hopefully be tempted enough to take Clarke there and then.

Clarke fiddled with the hem of the crop top yet again, she wasn't used to showing so much skin but she figured it was worth being a little uncomfortable if it meant Lexa would want to kiss her.

" _Jesus_." Lexa exclaimed loudly upon entering their apartment. "Clarke? Are you here? Why's it so hot—" Lexa stopped in the doorway, she looked up and down Clarke's body soaking up the image. " _Fuck_...."

"That would be because I tried to heat the place up a bit but I messed up and I have no idea how to fix it."

"I would argue there's another reason for it being so hot in here."

Clarke smirked. "Oh yeah? what reason would that be?"

Lexa blushed, her eyes still roaming over the smooth milky skin of Clarke's abdomen. "I mean.... _fuck_  Clarke have you seen how sexy you look? If there was a who's hotter competition between you and the freaking sun, you would definitely win."

Now Clarke was the one to blush. "I uh just needed to cool down."

"Well you look so damn good."

Clarke hadn't thought this would backfire on her but  _god_  was she dying for Lexa to break so she could finally kiss her. "I um....thanks, I know it's not how you're used to seeing me and I'm hardly a model or anything even close to it, I just—'

Lexa approached Clarke and put her hands on her bare sides causing her to stop speaking and look into Lexa's eyes. "Clarke you are far more beautiful than any model I have ever seen." Lexa moved one of her hands slowly across Clarke's bare stomach before she let it rest on Clarke's side again. "Your body is perfect." Lexa placed a kiss on her forehead. "Every part of you is perfect."

"Thank you."

Lexa felt a bead of sweat roll down her own forehead, she pulled away from Clarke and quickly explained "I'm gonna sort out this heating problem before I have to start losing some clothes."

Having some distance between them helped Clarke gain a little of her confidence back. "For the record I'm totally fine with you walking around the apartment in little to no clothing whenever you want."

"I'll keep that in mind." Lexa winked at Clarke before ducking out of the kitchen.

 

* * *

 

The plan came back to bite Clarke in the ass yet again that night when she entered the bathroom to find Lexa brushing her teeth in different night wear to what she was used to. Lexa was wearing a black tank top and green boxer briefs that seemed to hug her ass just perfectly.

Clarke swallowed thickly her throat suddenly dry. "No pj's tonight?"

"Nah it's still so hot I think I'd suffocate." Lexa noticed Clarke's stunned expression. "Is this okay? I can change if it makes you uncomfortable."

"No, no that's fine I'm just not used to seeing you like this." Clarke let her eyes roam over Lexa's body appreciatively. "Trust me it is definitely not an unwelcome sight."

A tinge of pink appeared on Lexa's cheeks.

Clarke was happy to see that she finally had some effect on Lexa.

 

* * *

 

_December 21st._   

They had been arguing for at least ten minutes now and Clarke was running out of ideas on how to get her way so she did the only thing she could think of, she straddled Lexa.

Lexa giggled and Clarke adored the sound of it. "Clarke, I really need to pack." 

"Nope, not yet."

"I'll be quick." Lexa reasoned.

"Just a few more minutes, please." She wrapped her arms around Lexa and pulled herself impossibly closer, she knew she wasn't playing fair but they had a rare moment of alone time and she didn't want to waste it.

Lexa sighed realizing she had lost the battle. "Fine."

Clarke placed a lingering kiss on Lexa's cheek.

Lexa closed her eyes and leaned into the kiss, enjoying the feeling of Clarke's lips pressed against her cheek was the only thing that mattered to her now.

 

* * *

 

While Lexa was packing Clarke came in and took five of her own t-shirts out of one of the drawers.

Lexa assumed Clarke was packing her stuff too until Clarke appeared next to her with the folded shirts and put them in Lexa's bag.

"Thought you might want them." Clarke explained.

Lexa beamed, she would be lying if she said she wasn't thinking about taking some of Clarke's shirts again, she just didn't know how to ask for them. "Thanks Clarke."

"Can I take some of yours too?"

"Of course, take whatever you want."

Clarke rustled through the top drawer seemingly knowing exactly where her favourite shirts were. She took a few out and then moved across the room and sprayed some of Lexa's perfume on each of them. When she turned she found Lexa looking at her with a raised brow. "What? I did the same with my ones for you."

Lexa took one of Clarke's shirts and raised it up to her nose to smell the sweet scent of Clarke's perfume on it. "That was a great idea."

 

* * *

 

_December 22nd._

As expected this goodbye had been the hardest one yet.

"So you'll call me when you get there and I'll text you when we're at mom's, then you text me before dinner and I'll call you after, sound good?"

"Sounds like we'll constantly be in contact and that sounds perfect to me."

"Still not the same without being able to feel you near me." Clarke sighed sadly.

"I know, I hate being apart just as much as you do Clarke but we'll talk, I have your shirts and you have mine, you've got Commander Coon and I've got Wanheda to cuddle with, I know it's not the same but it's more than we had last time."

"You're good at putting it all into perspective."

"I wish I didn't have to."

Clarke pulled Lexa into a tight hug. "I'm gonna miss this."

"Me too."

 

* * *

 

Lexa asked Raven to tell Clarke to go into her old room after they had gone. Clarke had no idea what Lexa and Raven had planned for her but it soon became clear when she opened the door and saw a large gift wrapped box in the middle of the room. There was a note taped to the outside of the box, she pulled that off first.

_'Clarke the box is open at the bottom just lift up to see what's inside.'_

After a small struggle Clarke managed to get the box off revealing the contents. She gasped seeing it. In front of her was a beautiful new easel with a matching stool, there was an intricate vine design engraved into the wood, it took Clarke's breath away.

_'Merry Christmas Skai Prisa,_

_I hope this is okay, I know we said we wouldn't get each other presents but when I saw it I couldn't resist and I had already bought it before we made that agreement so technically I did nothing wrong._

_An artist as talented as you deserves the very best tools to work with when you're creating your masterpieces._

_Missing you already,_

_Lexa (Your cupcake)_

_X'_

She pulled out her phone but slipped it back into her pocket when she remembered that Lexa was driving, she didn't want to distract her so she decided she would wait until they spoke later to thank her. She crossed over to the other apartment to find her friends. "So you both knew then?"

"Knew what?" Octavia asked, oblivious to what Clarke was talking about.

"About the presents from Lex."

"You got it?"

Clarke smiled and nodded.

"Do you like it?"

"I love it, it's so beautiful."

"Can we see it?"

"I thought you would have already?"

"Just pictures, Lexa was very adamant that you should be the first to see it in person."

Clarke grinned. "She's so thoughtful."

"And terrifying if you try to defy her." Octavia thought back to the glare she got from Lexa when she tried to sneak a peek at the present.

"You shouldn't have tried then."

"Yeah okay you're right."

"So can we see it now?" Raven asked.

"Yeah come on."

They both followed Clarke back to her apartment and into her old bedroom.

"Wow it's gorgeous."

"Woods knows you so well."

"That's usually how it works with soulmates." Octavia grinned.

"Yeah she gets me."

Both girls shared a knowing look when Clarke didn't deny the claim that they were soulmates.

 

* * *

 

"Hey." Lexa answered the call.

"Lex, you are so sweet, i'm so lucky to have you in my life."

Lexa grinned. "You got the present?"

"I did, it's so beautiful, it must have cost a small fortune, you really didn't have to do this." Clarke ran her hand along the edge of the easel for the umpteenth time.

"I wanted to get you something special."

"I'll treasure it forever." Clarke said earnestly. "This stool is so incredibly comfortable I've been here for hours."

"Maybe you should take a break, it can't be good for your health to stay in the same position for hours." Lexa said worriedly.

"I know, I'll do some stretches in a while, maybe get something to eat too, I just wanted to call you first. I miss you, I know it's only been a few hours and it probably sounds ridiculous but I just—"

"Clarke." Lexa interrupted.

"Yeah?"

"I miss you too."

 

* * *

 

_December 23rd._

Clarke hadn't even stopped the car yet when Octavia jumped out and ran to the house.

"You jumping out too?" Clarke asked Raven.

"I think I'll wait until we've stopped first, I'm excited to see Bell but not enough to injure myself."

"Bell would probably lecture O for an hour about safety if he knew she'd done that."

"Yeah....can we tell him?"

"As much as I'd enjoy that he would probably force us to listen too and I don't wanna sit through that."

When they got inside they found the two siblings wrapped up in a tight embrace.

"Is this just a Blake hug or can the rest of us join?"

"Since when do you ask first?" Bellamy held out one of his arms beckoning Clarke and Raven to join them which they quickly did.

"Lexa's been a good influence on them." Abby commented from the kitchen doorway.

Bellamy grinned. "Clearly. You know every time we speak I find something new to like about her."

"Well there is plenty to like about her." Abby remarked.

"We really have to figure out a way for me to meet her properly and I want to meet Lincoln and Anya too, I can't believe you two didn't tell me you're dating them."

"Damn Mama G did you tell him about them?"

"In my defense I didn't know you were keeping them a secret."

Octavia sighed. "We were going to tell him but like after he met them and liked them first."

"And what if I don't like them?"

"You will."

"What makes you so sure?"

"They're related to Lexa and you already like her." Clarke explained.

"Fair point." 

 

* * *

 

_Christmas Eve._

"So how are things going in Arkadia?"

"Terrific, everything has gotten so much better and easier since I started speaking to everyone. And now I have Linc and Anya there too and they're dating Octavia and Raven which is a little weird but great, life's just very surreal at the moment."

"And the nightmares?"

"Haven't had one in a few weeks now." Lexa stated proudly.

"That's fantastic Lexa, I'm so happy for you."

"Thanks Alie and thank you for all your help I really couldn't have done this without you."

"I just gave you a little guidance, you did all the hard work yourself." Alie smiled proudly at Lexa.

"Being surrounded by good people that wanted to help made it a whole lot easier."

"There is one particular person that I want to ask about, if I can?"

Lexa nodded in understanding. "Clarke."

"Yes, how are things going with Clarke?"

"Good, I think."

"Want to talk about it?"

"I'm just not entirely sure what it is we're doing, we're friends but it feels like we're more than that too."

"Well that's what you want isn't it? To be more than just close friends?"

"Yes, there's nothing I want more than to be with Clarke, I'm just not sure how to ask about what it is we're doing and I'm worried I might mess everything up between us if I do."

"What is it that you're doing that's so confusing?"

"You know about us sleeping in the same bed."

"Don't tell me you've stopped that."

"Actually we kind of decided that Clarke should just move into my room."

"Oh that's fantastic." Alie beamed.

"Yeah?"

"Definitely, especially if you want to move your relationship forward with her."

"Okay but there's other things too, like we kiss a lot now, not like making out or anything just on the cheek and stuff, we do that a lot."

"So far I'm not hearing anything that would suggest Clarke doesn't feel the same way about you."

"We use pet names a lot, well Clarke uses them the most but that's because I accidentally called her love once and she likes to tease me about it."

"Are you sure she's teasing you about it or could that just be a cover for wanting to call you a pet name?"

"I don't understand."

"Does she put a lot of emphasis on it when she says it or does it sound natural?"

"I don't really know. When she calls me Cupcake she puts a lot of emphasis on it because she knows it's my least favourite one but when she calls me babe or baby it sounds natural."

Alie's smile grew bigger after hearing the pet names Clarke used for her. "Okay so basically you have a girlfriend just without the physical intimacy and honestly I don't think you're far off getting to that point." Alie could see that Lexa didn't really believe that. "I've got an idea, let's get an opinion from someone who has seen you two interact."

Lexa immediately knew what she meant. "Lincoln would be the preferred choice, Anya will just tease me relentlessly."

Alie nodded in agreement knowing that was true. She went down the hall to Lincoln's room and found him unpacking his bag. "Hey Lincoln, can you help me with something?"

Lincoln shrugged. "Sure."

"Okay follow me." She led the way back to Lexa's room, keeping an eye out to make sure Anya didn't notice them.

"So Lincoln in your honest opinion what do you really think of Clarke and Lexa's relationship?" Alie asked after she had closed the door.

Lincoln looked between Alie and Lexa unsure of how honest he really was supposed to be. "They have a good relationship."

"Okay let's try a different approach, if you were a complete stranger and you met Clarke and Lexa what would you think they are to each other? Close friends? More?"

Lincoln looked nervously between them again before letting out a sigh. "More." He looked apologetically at his cousin. "Sorry Lex."

"It's alright Linc, I need you to be completely honest."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes, please tell me what you really think."

"You and Clarke are practically a couple, everyone that meets you two assumes you're together because you kind of are."

"Can you explain that for us?" Alie asked.

"You're both just very obviously crazy about each other, you're always touching in some way whether it's cuddling or just holding hands, you're always looking at each other like people in love do, when you're apart for too long you're like two sad puppies. Neither of you are very good at hiding your feelings and I really just don't understand why you two aren't together."

"You see? It's clear to everyone but you that Clarke wants to be with you just as much as you want to be with her." Alie explained.

Lexa remained silent for a minute, thinking about what her cousin had said. "I think I might try to talk to her about it."

"That's great Lex." Lincoln said.

"I want to do it in person though, it's too important to do over the phone."

Alie nodded in agreement. "I think that's a good idea."

 

* * *

 

_Meanwhile back in Arkadia._  

Bellamy found Clarke curled up on one of the patio chairs out back. She had just ended her call to Lexa, she decided to go outside when everyone kept taking her phone away from her so they could speak to Lexa, she didn't mind them wanting to talk to Lexa but she wanted to be able to speak to Lexa without constant interruptions.

"I know that look." He sat down in a chair next to Clarke.

"Hmm?"

"Someone's missing Lexa."

"Yeah." Clarke said sadly.

"How's everything going with her?"

"She's fantastic, life with her is fantastic."  Clarke said dreamily.

"That's great. So tell me how long have you been in love with her?" Bellamy asked bluntly.

Clarke looked shocked.

"Don't give me that look, I know you well enough to know when you're in love."

"We haven't even talked about the possibility of us dating yet Bell, I think it might be too soon to be talking about love."

"There's no set time on when you fall in love Clarke, it just happens, I know it's scary, terrifying really but it's also the best thing that could ever happen to you and you shouldn't be afraid to let yourself love."

Clarke looked up at the stars above them, thinking about how her father likely would've said the same thing to her if he was there. "What am I gonna do Bell? I'm in way too deep, what if she doesn't feel the same?"

Bellamy gave her a disbelieving look. "Clarke, I haven't even met Lexa in person yet and even I know she feels the same way about you."

Clarke sighed. "I hope you're right."

He squeezed her shoulder reassuringly. "I know I am."

 

* * *

 

_Christmas Morning in Arkadia._

Clarke carefully unwrapped the box, everyone watching with baited breath as she did, a quiet gasp escaped her as she pulled out the familiar piece of jewellery. "Where did you get this?"

"Someone at the lab figured out that it was Jake's when they noticed he was wearing it in an old photograph. It was pretty badly damaged when they returned it to me but Octavia and Raven have spent the last few weeks getting it fixed up for you." Abby explained.

Clarke wiped away a few of the tears that had slipped down her cheeks. "I don't....how can I...." Clarke took a minute to compose herself. "You guys are the best, thank you so much for this."

"Anything for you Griff."

"We love you Clarkey."

"I love all of you too."

"Oh god you're all going to make me cry." Abby said trying to stop herself from tearing up.

"Aw don't cry mom, come on let's hug it out." Clarke stood up and held out her arms waiting for her family to form another group hug which they were all happy to do.

 

* * *

 

_Christmas Morning in Polis._

Christmas morning had been wonderful for Lexa, she got to spend it with people she loved who had given her beautiful gifts just as she had done for them but one thing was missing, she had yet to hear her favourite girls voice which is why she had slipped away under the pretense of getting changed so that she could call Clarke but before she could there was a knock on her door. "Lex?"

"Come in." She called out. "What's up Linc?"

"Before you call Clarke I think you should open this, she asked me to give it to you today." He handed over the beautifully wrapped present to her and then backed out of the room giving her privacy.

Lexa examined the large gift on her lap, running her hands along the edges before beginning to unwrap the golden bow. She tore away some of the paper and found a plain cardboard box inside, she tore away more of the paper revealing the opening. When she opened the box she found a beautiful wicker tray with a set of six candles on it. She carefully took each one out noticing that they all had different nature themed scents. When she removed the tray she was surprised to find there was more in the box. She recognized the faux fur blanket as soon as she saw it, she had admired it once but had decided not to buy it. She had no idea how Clarke knew that she wanted it when she hadn't ever mentioned it to her but she ultimately decided that Clarke knew more about her than even she had realized.

_'Lex,_

_I was thinking about our little talk about living in the woods together and I thought if we can't do that then we can at least bring the woods to us._

_Our bedroom can be like our tent, the smell of the candles will make it seem like we're surrounded by nature (without all the bugs) the blanket just seemed to fit perfectly with the woodland theme and I may or may not have seen you looking at the price tag on it when we were shopping, anyways it will be our own little woods in the comfort of our home._

_Merry Christmas cupcake,_

_Yours always,_

_Clarke_

_xxx'_

Lexa pulled out her phone as soon as she had finished reading, it rang only twice before Clarke answered. "Hey Le—"

"Clarke Griffin you are the most remarkable person I have ever met and I cannot believe how lucky I am to have you in my life, I adore you and I am so thankful that the universe brought us together."

There was complete silence from Clarke, she wasn't expecting that.

"Clarke?"

"Sorry you just surprised me. I don't know what I did for you to say that but I want you to know I feel the same way about you Lexa."

There was a beat of silence, both of them just grinned with their phone's pressed to their ears.

"Merry Christmas Lexa."

"Merry Christmas Clarke." There was another moment of silence before Lexa spoke again. "Thank you for the gifts, I love them and I think it's a beautiful idea."

"Ah so that's what I did to deserve such kind words." Clarke deduced.

"Those words have always been true."

"Merry Christmas Lexa." Bellamy's voice boomed making Clarke jump.

Clarke slapped his arm playfully. "Bellamy Blake were you eavesdropping on our conversation?" She asked in a scolding tone.

"No....?" Bellamy was confused about why she would think that.

"How did you know that it's Lexa then?" Clarke asked in an accusatory tone.

"You're smiling the same way you do whenever you hear someone mention Lexa's name and yes it did take me less than twenty-four hours to figure out you've got a special Lexa smile."

"You're such an ass."

"What? Can you deny it?"

Lexa listened intently for Clarke's response but all she heard was Bellamy chuckling.

"Lexa If you're wondering she's blushing." Bellamy yelled making sure Lexa heard him clearly.

"I am not opposed to murdering you on Christmas day Blake."

"Fine I'll leave you to it, I hope you have a great day Lexa."

"Tell him I said have a great Christmas." Lexa said to Clarke.

"She said have a great Christmas." Clarke repeated.

"Thanks, bye Lexa."

 

* * *

 

It was two days after Christmas and Anya, Lexa and Lincoln had a plan. The three of them walked into the kitchen looking like the picture of innocence.

"Mom, dad, umm Lexa has something to ask you."

Lexa glared at Anya. "We were wondering if maybe some friends of ours could come here on New Year's Eve?"

Indra chuckled. "Did you three practice that look together before you came down here?"

The three of them looked a little guilty, Indra and Gustus chuckled again.

"That's a definite yes then." Indra declared. "These friends of yours would they happen to be Clarke, Raven and Octavia?"

"How'd you know?" Anya questioned.

"You three haven't stopped talking about them since you got here." Gustus smiled smugly knowing they couldn't deny it.

"Fine we might have been a little obvious."

"Just a little? Really? You're like three love sick puppies."

"What about their families? Won't they want to spend it with them?" Indra asked.

"Well there's only Marcus, Abby and Bellamy so we were thinking they could come too?" Lincoln asked.

"I see and do you know how they would feel about it?"

"No but we can ask."

"I'm sure they would be happy about it, Marcus and Abby already know Thelonious and from what I've heard it's been a while since they've gotten to see each other. As for Bellamy he has mentioned a few times now that he'd like to meet us but it's difficult with him working so much and living so far away so it would be the perfect chance for us to meet him." Lexa reasoned.

"Well we wouldn't mind meeting them all." Indra admitted.

"Is that a yes?" Anya asked, her surprise evident in her tone.

"That's a yes but only if they agree and you don't pressure them into saying yes." Gustus confirmed.

"Okay."

"Make sure you tell them we have space for them here so they can stay the night, I don't want them driving back in the middle of the night." Indra added before they all rushed out of the room to call the girls and let them know.

 

* * *

 

"Clarke, I need to ask you something." Lexa said as soon as Clarke answered the call.

"Sure, what's up?"

"I was wondering...well me, Anya and Linc were wondering if maybe you would all want to come here for New year's Eve?"

"I would love to but we usually spend it with Bell, mom and Marcus and Bell's girlfriend is coming this year."

"They're all invited too, the whole family."

"Still it's kind of a long way away Lex and we would have to drive back in the middle of the night."

"Nope you don't have to, we've got space for everyone here." Lexa said cheerfully.

"Everyone?" Clarke was clearly surprised and baffled. "Exactly how big is your house Lex?"

"Big enough for you all to stay here, so would you like to come here?"

"Well I'm definitely in but I'll have to check with everyone else first."

"Okay, well you have a few days to decide so there's no rush."

"I'll keep you updated with what they say."

"Oh Thelonious wanted someone to tell Marcus and Abby that him and Alie will be here too."

"I'll tell them that." There was a comfortable silence as the two thought about just how perfect it would be to be together celebrating the new year. "I really hope everyone says yes Lex."

"Me too Clarke."

 

* * *

  

Octavia pushed Clarke's bedroom door open. "Did you hear?"

"Umhmm I'm still on the phone to Lex." Clarke pulled the phone away from her ear, put it on speaker and placed it on the bed. "You're on loudspeaker babe."

"Hey Woods." Raven followed Octavia into the room.

"We miss you Commander."

Raven and Octavia joined Clarke on the bed.

"I miss you guys too but hopefully I'll be seeing you all soon."

"I talked to Bell after Lincoln told me and he said that him and Echo are totally on board with this plan, it would be a shorter drive for them too."

"Now we just have to figure out how to get Mama Griff and Marcus to agree, failure is not an option here."

"They'll agree or I will pester them until they do." Clarke declared.

"Loving that determination Griff."

"I really want this to work, it would be the perfect way to end this year and start the next."

 

* * *

  

"Hey you both miss Lex, Linc and Anya, right?"

"Of course." Abby responded without hesitation. 

"I still haven't met Lincoln or Anya but your mother said I'd like them and of course I miss Lexa." Marcus added. "Why do you ask?"

"Well what if I told you that we could see them pretty soon." Clarke sat down on the other side of the table, ready to talk them into approving of this plan.

"How exactly?" Abby asked warily, unsure of what her daughter was planning.

"They invited us to their house for New Years Eve but before you decide there are a few things you should know."

"Alright let's hear it then."

"Okay so Bell and Echo are invited too, there's plenty of space for all of us to stay the night with them, Indra and Gustus insisted that we do stay because they don't want us driving back in the middle of the night. Mister Jaha and his wife will be there and most importantly we'll get to meet their family."

"Anya and Lincoln's parents are on board with all of this?"

"Yup, they were the ones that insisted we stay."

"You really miss Lexa, don't you?" Abby gave her a knowing look.

Clarke nodded vigorously. "So much."

Abby and Marcus both chuckled. "Alright we're going to Polis then."

"Really?"

"Yes, we would love to meet their family."

"It would be great to see Thelonious again too." Marcus added.

"And we miss them too Clarke so of course we would love to spend New Years Eve with them."

 

* * *

 

_December 31st._

The three girls pulled up to the house early that afternoon. They were amazed and shocked by the size of the house. 

"Do either of you know what Indra and Gustus do for a living?" Clarke asked as the car came to a stop in the driveway.

"No but with a house like this they gotta do something pretty major." Octavia replied before climbing out of the car.

Lincoln emerged from the house, a big beaming smile on his face as he approached his girlfriend and friends.

Octavia ran towards him, jumped into his open arms and wrapped her legs around his waist.

Raven whistled encouragingly while Clarke pretended to gag at the sight of the couple kissing passionately.

When they finally broke apart Lincoln turned to the side so he could see Raven and Clarke while still holding onto Octavia. "Hey guys, I'm so glad you could come, mom and dad are excited to meet you."

"What exactly is it that your mom and dad do Linc? 'Cause this house is a freaking mansion." Clarke was still slightly stunned by the size of it.

Lincoln chuckled. "Yeah we probably should've told you about that."

"So are you going to explain now?" Raven asked.

"Well mom's a cop."

"So don't piss off your mom, got it." Raven remarked.

"And your dad?" Octavia asked.

"Well he kind of owns Grounders diners." Lincoln said somewhat awkwardly.

Octavia's eyes widened dramatically. "Holy shit."

"Seriously?" Clarke asked.

"Yeah."

"Damn that's surprising." Raven stated.

Lexa was upstairs switching the blanket on her bed with the blanket Clarke had given her, she had decided not to use it until her and Clarke were together again so she figured tonight would be the perfect night for it. She practically bounced down the stairs as soon as she heard the familiar voices of her friends, running out the front door and nearly tackling Clarke in a hug.

Clarke chuckled. "Hey babe."

Lexa hummed contentedly. "Hey."

"Clearly she has a favourite." Raven feigned offence.

"You've always known I'm her favourite and she's mine." Clarke happily replied.

Hearing the last two words particularly clearly Lexa sighed and melted into the hug even more. "I missed you."

"I missed you too."

"Come on in, let's get the introductions over with." Lincoln directed them into the house.

"You guys go ahead, we'll be in soon." Clarke said.

"We're not actually going in soon are we?" Lexa asked once the others had gone inside.

"Nope I just wanted to hug you without an audience."

" _God_  I missed holding you."

"Me too babe."

They stayed wrapped up in each others arms for another minute before Lexa pulled back a little so she could look at Clarke while still being able to hold her.

"Where's your mom and Marcus?"

"They should be here soon, they had to stop for gas before we left Arkadia so they're a few minutes behind us."

"You two ever planning to separate?" Raven asked coming back outside with Anya, soon followed by everyone else.

"I haven't seen her in over a week, you should sit your asses down now 'cause I'm not letting go anytime soon." Lexa replied.

"When Anya said you two were inseparable I thought she was exaggerating, clearly I was wrong." Indra stated with amusement in her voice.

"It would be nice if we could be officially introduced to Clarke at some point." Gustus commented.

Lexa sighed. "Fair enough." She reluctantly pulled away from Clarke. "Indra, Gus this is Clarke Griffin."

"It's nice to meet you both." Clarke said politely.

Clarke was pulled into a bear hug by the huge man, she was surprised for a moment but she soon remembered that this was Lincoln's dad and much like his son he was just a big softy.

"You're quite famous in our household Clarke." The woman pulled Clarke into a tenser hug but after a moment they both relaxed. "Thank you for everything you've done for our niece, we've never seen her so happy."

As they broke apart Clarke looked at Lexa with a fond look on her face. "She makes me happy too." Clarke took hold of Lexa's hand and intertwined their fingers.

 

* * *

 

Abby and Marcus arrived a few minutes later, Lexa was glad to see they were getting along with Indra and Gustus even better than any of them had expected.

 

* * *

 

Clarke smiled fondly as she looked around the patio, Lincoln and Octavia were sat on the far end of the table, Octavia whispering something to Lincoln that had him squirming slightly in his chair, Clarke shook her head knowing Octavia was probably teasing him to see how uncomfortable she could make him in the presence of their families.

Abby, Gustus and Anya were over at a table beside the grill Anya seemed to be demonstrating some cooking technique to them, Abby looked impressed while Gustus watched with a clear look of pride on his face.

Indra and Marcus were in the kitchen, as soon as Marcus found out she was a cop he had seen it as his opportunity to get answers for everything he had ever wanted to know about law enforcement, luckily Indra loved talking about her work so she was happy to answer all his questions.

Lexa was sat on Clarke's lap speaking to Raven who was sitting directly across from them catching her up on what they had done while they were separated.

Everyone seemed to have easily accepted that Clarke and Lexa were going to be as close as they possibly could be now that they were back together, they were both glad that no one was giving them a hard time about it.

 

* * *

 

Clarke wasn't sure how long she had spent admiring the scene before Lexa turned on her lap and put her arm around her.

"How about you and I spend some time alone?" Lexa suggested.

"Sounds good to me. What do you want to do?"

Lexa took a minute to think of something they could do. "How about a tour of Polis? It's not as impressive as Arkadia but it'll give us time alone."

"That would be perfect." Clarke said with an easy smile. "Hey guys me and Lex are going out for a little while."

"Alright we'll see you later." Abby responded.

"Drive carefully." Indra added.

 

* * *

 

They were strolling around looking at the shop windows still full of Christmas decorations when they heard a voice calling out Lexa's name. They both looked around them trying to find the source, Clarke soon spotted the man and pointed him out to Lexa.

Lexa looked stunned when she saw who was approaching them. "Roan?"

The man still looked much the same as he did when she had last seen him, his hair had grown and was now just below his shoulders, he dressed much smarter now, although it was clear he still had a fondness for black clothing, he wore a simple black jumper and black trousers and a black overcoat with black leather shoes.

"Lexa it's so good to see you." He said pulling a still somewhat stunned Lexa into a firm hug. "This is Luna my fiancée." Roan said when he took a step back, he gestured to the brunette woman that stood beside him sporting a kind smile.

"Hi Lexa it's great to meet you I've heard so much about you and I know Roan's been hoping to see you again."

"Nice to meet you too Luna and I've been hoping I'd get to see Roan again too." She directed a smile at them both and gestured beside her. "This is Clarke my um....well my Clarke." Everyone chuckled and Lexa blushed but her embarrassment eased when she saw the fond look she was getting from Clarke.

"Nice to meet you Clarke."

"Nice to meet you too." She shook Luna's hand before reaching over to shake Roan's hand too. "I've heard a lot about you Roan, I'm glad I can put a face to the name."

"Couldn't have been a glowing report, I'm afraid I wasn't exactly a good guy the last time I saw Lexa." He said with sadness clear in his tone.

"I've always thought of you as a good guy Roan."

"Really?" Roan asked, clearly surprised.

"Of course."

"It's true. When she told me about you I thought you seemed like a good guy that was just caught in a bad situation."

"I have an idea." Luna announced. "We were just going to a nice little cafe we came across earlier, would you two like to join us? I think it'd be good for you two to catch up and we could all get to know each other."

"I think that would be great." Clarke knew Lexa missed having Roan as a friend and she thought it would be good for them to repair their friendship.

"Yeah I'd like that." Lexa agreed.

 

* * *

 

"God I have missed you so much Lex." Roan said after they had spent a few minutes making small talk.

"I've missed you too Roan."

"I really was hoping to see you, I wanted to apologize for everything I put you through."

"You don't have to apologize for anything Roan, it was out of your control."

"No I should have stood up to my mother and I should've told you about Ontari and Costia, I'm so glad I finally cut them all out of my life."

"Really? I'm sorry it came to that."

"I'm not, I wish I had done it sooner, they were poisonous people."

"You deserved better than them."

"I never should've let them influence me especially when it came to everything that happened with you. You were the truest friend I had, I never should've let you go, is there any way I can earn your forgiveness?" Roan's sorrow and remorse was clear in his expression.

"Roan you don't need to be forgiven, you were loyal to your family as anyone would be, I don't blame you, I never did. Only they are responsible for what happened and I'm sorry that you had to cut ties with them but I know you'll be better off without them."

Roan nodded in agreement. "When I found out they were trying to get Luna out of my life it was the final straw."

"If you don't mind me asking, why wouldn't they want you and Luna to be together? You seem like a great couple." Clarke inquired.

"I think they saw me as a threat." Luna replied.

Roan hummed his agreement. "They must have thought that once I married Luna they wouldn't be able to control me anymore so they wanted her gone."

"They are very warped people." Lexa stated.

"Unfortunately I was one of them and I really would like to find some way to make it up to you Lexa."

"It's really okay Roan, I'm just glad I got to see you again." Lexa smiled kindly at him.

"Me too."

Lexa decided to change the subject, hoping he would stop apologizing if she did. "So tell me about your life, how did you two meet?"

"We were both studying political science in Washington we met on our first day of classes and we hit it off straight away, we've been together for nearly three years now."

"Oh I could totally see you two as leaders someday." Clarke remarked.

"What brought you back here then?" Lexa asked curiously.

"We were here to give Ro's family a second chance."

"Yeah we made the mistake of thinking that in the spirit of the new year there could be new beginnings but those two will never change." Roan said sadly.

"I'm sorry to hear that." Lexa said sympathetically. "So what are you doing tonight then?"

Roan shrugged. "We'll probably just find a bar and hang out there for the night."

"We're having a little party at my uncle's tonight, you two should come."

"We wouldn't want to intrude."

"You wouldn't be, we'd love to have you there."

"Bellamy would have someone to talk to about Washington stuff." Clarke said enthusiastically.

"Alright we would love to." Roan smiled happily.

"What about you two?" Luna asked.

"Us?" Clarke questioned.

"Yeah how did you two meet?"

"Oh well I transferred to Arkadia University this year and I ended up moving in with Clarke which turned out to be the best thing that's ever happened to me." Lexa smiled fondly at Clarke and took her hand from the table, intertwining their fingers.

"We've had this powerful bond since the moment we met." Clarke added with her own adoring smile.

"After everything that happened i was a little different, I stopped talking to everyone for about two years, I only really spoke to Anya and Lincoln and my teachers in class but only when necessary. Everything changed when one of my teachers told me I had helped him find his love for teaching again, he told me he used some of his connections to get me a place in Arkadia University and then insisted that he and his wife would pay my fees, they've been a huge part of my life ever since and his wife has been using her psychology skills to help me work through my issues. When I moved to Arkadia I met Clarke and her friends, I really started wanting to get better and I did."

"I'm sorry you had it so rough but I'm glad to hear you got through it."

"You know if I hadn't gone through all that I probably wouldn't have met Clarke and that would've been a true tragedy." Lexa wrapped her arm around Clarke and pressed a kiss to her temple.

"You two are so adorable." Luna practically cooed.

 

* * *

 

When they got back to the house Gustus and Abby were in the kitchen laughing about whatever they were watching through the window.

"Hey we're back." Lexa announced.

"How was the tour?" Abby asked turning to face them.

"Great I got to meet some of Lexa's friends."

"Oh?" Gustus looked at Lexa with raised eyebrows wondering who they could've bumped into.

"Roan and his fiancée." Lexa informed him.

"Oh Roan we liked him, right?"

"Yeah, he's a good guy, I invited him and his fiancee to come here tonight, is that okay?"

"That's fine, any friends of yours are always welcome here."

"So what's been going on around here?"

"Your aunt has been teaching Octavia some self defense moves." Abby answered.

"I don't think Linc was expecting her to be such a quick study." Gustus said with a sympathetic tone.

"Octavia may be small but she is a force to be reckoned with." Abby said with a hint of pride in her tone.

"She's made quite an impression on Indra." Gustus commented.

"They still going at it?" Lexa asked.

"Yeah."

"Let's go watch." She said to Clarke. 

When they got out back they were met with the sight of Lincoln pinned to the ground by Octavia as Indra and Marcus cheered for her. They didn't get much closer before they were stopped by Anya. "I need to speak to you." Anya said solemnly to Lexa.

"Okay." Lexa responded with a frown, confused about her cousin's tone of voice. "I'll be back in a minute." She informed Clarke.

They moved just far enough away that no one would be able to hear their conversation. "What's up?"

"Costia came by while you were gone."

Lexa visibly tensed, her fists clenched at her side. "What the hell was she doing here?"

"I don't know but whatever it was I'm sure it was bad news."

Lexa started pacing back and forth, her jaw clenched and hands balled up into fists at her side.

Anya could tell her cousin was getting riled up and needed an outlet to work through it. "Lex you need to get this out of your system, you should hit the bag."

"Yeah you're right."

"I'll check on you in a few minutes."

Anya watched Lexa walk back into the house before she returned to Clarke and Raven.

"Is Lexa okay?" Clarke asked immediately.

"Yeah she just needs to work some stuff out."

Clarke just nodded, worry written all over her face. Looking for something to distract herself she moved closer to where Octavia and Lincoln were sparring.

"How is she really?" Raven asked once Clarke was far enough away that she wouldn't hear her.

"Tense but she'll get through it."

"Anything we can do to help?"

"No, this is something she's got to do herself."

 

* * *

 

When Anya entered the room she found Lexa doing her best to destroy the punching bag. She had only seen Lexa this worked up a handful of times, she knew this was a delicate situation and she needed to handle this right or Lexa could really hurt herself. She ran back out to the yard. "Lincoln it's Lexa, she's really laying into the bag."

"Shit okay." Lincoln bolted past her and into the house.

"Anya?" Indra's worry was clear in her voice.

"it's okay, we can manage." Anya headed towards the house again but stopped when she reached Clarke and Raven. "Clarke we might need your help."

"Uh yeah okay let's go." Clarke quickly followed Anya through the house and out to the garage where she found Lexa frantically trying to escape from the tight grip Lincoln had on her.

"Whoa Lexa, we need you to calm down, okay?" Clarke could tell that Lexa hadn't heard her, she was trapped in her own clouded mind, she moved closer and put her hands on Lexa's cheeks. "Baby please listen to me."

"Clarke?"

"Yes it's me Lex, I'm here." Clarke's relief was clear in her voice.

Lexa finally stopped trying to break out of Lincoln's grasp. "Clarke...." Her voice sounded pleading.

"Babe I need you to breathe, okay? Take deep breaths for me."

Lexa did as she instructed.

Clarke pressed her hand flat against Lexa's chest feeling her racing heart. "You're doing great, keep going."

She took Lexa's hand and pressed it against her own chest hoping it would help match their heart rates.

After a few moments Lexa's breathing was back to normal and all traces of anger had disappeared so Lincoln loosened his grip on her.

"I'm sorry." Lexa words sounded like a whimper.

"Hey listen to me you don't have to apologize, you got worked up it happens to everyone." Clarke said gently.

Lexa nodded weakly, she felt guilty and ashamed for losing control of herself.

"Guys can you give us some time alone?" Clarke asked Lincoln and Anya who were watching them both closely, they were impressed by how quickly Clarke had managed to calm their cousin usually it was a much longer and far more difficult process, they both nodded before quickly exiting the room.

Lexa leaned back against the wall, she tilted her head back and took a few deep breaths.

"Do you want to talk about it?"

"Costia was here while we were gone."

A disdainful look appeared on Clarke's face hearing that name.

"Knowing she was here hit me hard, I'm scared she's going to mess up all the good things in my life, I don't want her anywhere near you."

Clarke moved forward, placed her hands on Lexa's hips and pressed her forehead against Lexa's. "Sweetie, Costia can't and won't ever mess up what you and I have, okay? I'll never let her or anyone else come between us and I know you won't either."

Lexa let her eyes fall shut as a single tear rolled down her cheek. "Promise?"

"I promise." Clarke leaned forward and kissed Lexa's cheek where the tear had left a wet streak. "You are so important to me Lexa, I will do whatever it takes to keep you in my life."

 

* * *

 

Clarke decided to hang out in Lexa's room while she was in the shower rather than going back outside to the others. She was lying on the bed texting Lincoln to let him know that everything was okay when Lexa came back into the room. "Feel better now?"

"Much better."

"It shows." Clarke patted the empty space on the bed. "Come here."

Lexa gladly hopped onto the bed and snuggled up close to Clarke. "It helps....most of the time."

"What does?"

"Exercise. Sometimes my past frustrates me, I used to bottle it all up until Linc taught me to get it out through exercise."

"That explains the abs of steel."

"Yeah well I used to need to work out a lot more than I do now so that was kind of inevitable."

"So it helps then? Being in Arkadia?" Clarke took hold of Lexa's hand. "Being with us?"

"Yeah it does, especially being with you." Lexa admitted.

"Yeah?"

"The reason I don't get frustrated about my past anymore is because it brought me to you and I much prefer spending my time with you rather than working out."

Clarke smiled warmly. "This time it was because Costia was too close to us?"

"Everything in my life is perfect right now, I've never been so happy or felt so safe. The idea of my past creeping back up and messing up everything now scares the hell out of me."

"You know whatever problems you encounter you don't have to deal with them alone, we'll face them together."

Lexa shifted so she could lean on her elbow and look at Clarke. "You don't have to do that, you know?"

"And you don't have to protect me from Finn but you still go into commander mode whenever he's mentioned."

"That's different." Lexa argued.

"How?"

"He hurt you."

"Costia hurt you."

"Finn's still trying to hurt you though."

"I think it's pretty clear that Costia is trying to do the same to you and there is absolutely no way I'm going to let her do that." Clarke fired back.

Lexa was defeated and she knew it. "So you'll protect me from my ex and I'll protect you from yours?"

"Yeah I think that's what we've settled on."

"It's kind of like you're the guardian of my heart and I'm the guardian of yours."

Clarke smiled fondly and shook her head. "You are a dork."

" _Clarke._ " Lexa whined. "I'm not a dork."

"Yeah you totally are babe."

"Take it back."

"Nope, embrace it."

"I'll embrace you." Lexa said in what was meant to be a menacing way.

Clarke chuckled. "Was that supposed to be a threat?"

Before Clarke could figure out what had happened Lexa was on top of her, both of her legs fit snuggly between Clarke's, using one hand to pin both of Clarke's hands above her head while the other trailed down her side in a way Clarke was all too familiar with. "Don't even think about it Lexa."

"Say I'm not a dork."

"Never." Clarke declared, refusing to back down.

"Jus drein jus daun."

"What does that mean?" When Clarke was met with only silence she panicked. "No jus drein jus daun."

"Excellent pronunciation Wanheda but not quite right so I'm afraid I cannot comply." Lexa didn't give Clarke a chance to reply before she started tickling her side.

Clarke squirmed as she tried to hold in her giggling, it was a futile effort, she barely managed to hold it for more than ten seconds.

The door burst open, Lexa stopped tickling Clarke and glanced over at the door to see Anya standing there with a smug grin on her face.

Lexa rolled her eyes, knowing Anya would tease her about this some time soon. "What is it Anya?"

"The Jaha's are here."

"Alright we'll be down in a minute." Lexa informed her.

When Anya remained standing in the doorway the two grew confused. "Was there something else?" Lexa asked.

"We're really not going to talk about the position you're in right now?"

"Out Anya." Lexa ordered.

Clarke couldn't help but laugh at Anya's pout as she left the room. "How long do you think it'll take her to tell the others?"

"She probably running to tell them right now."

"So the Jaha's are here already."

Lexa hummed. "Do you want to go see them now?"

"Can we just stay like this for a few more minutes?"

"Umhmm." Lexa lay her head down on Clarke's shoulder. "Are you nervous about seeing him again?"

"Yeah it's been a long time, I don't really remember much about him."

"I don't know what he was like back then but I can tell you he's a really nice guy and his wife is great too."

"You'll stay with me right?"

"Of course." Lexa stretched up to place a kiss on Clarke's temple and then went back to her previous position resting her head on Clarke's shoulder.

After a few moments Clarke broke the silence. "Lex?"

"Hmm?"

"Why do you kiss me on the temple?"

Lexa pushed herself up on her elbows so that she was hovering above Clarke. "Does it bother you? I can stop if you want?"

"No!" Clarke rushed out, blushing immediately after. "I like when you do that, I'm just curious about why you do it."

"I guess it just feels like I'm sending good thoughts directly into your mind, does that make sense?"

"It does and it's so sweet of you to do that." Clarke joined her hands behind Lexa's neck and pulled her closer so she could kiss her temple too. "I want you to have good thoughts too."

Lexa hummed contently. "I wish we could stay like this all day but we really should go join the others."

"Yeah you're right."

Lexa pushed herself up off of Clarke.

Clarke instantly missed the warmth of Lexa's body pressed against hers.

As they walked down the stairs hand in hand they saw everyone gathered by the door chatting happily amongst themselves.

Thelonious was the first to spot them. "Clarke Griffin look how grown up you are."

"Hello Mister Jaha." Clarke greeted politely as they reached the bottom of the staircase.

Thelonious chuckled. "You can call me Thelonious."

"Okay, it's great to see you again Thelonious."

"You too Clarke." He responded with a sweet smile before scooping her up into a hug. When he pulled back from the hug he gestured towards Alie who was hugging Lexa. "This is my wife Alie."

Lexa moved around Clarke to hug Thelonious while Alie and Clarke were greeting each other.

"Hi Clarke I've heard so much about you." Alie said stretching her arms out to pull Clarke into another hug.

"Same here, thanks for everything you've done for Lexa."

"We all want the best for Lexa besides she did all the hard work herself." Alie smiled proudly at Lexa.

"Strange how we're all connected, isn't it?" Marcus questioned.

"I'm starting to believe it was written in the stars for all of us to meet." Thelonious replied.

"It's like you two said, everything got better when Lexa came into our lives." Marcus said to Thelonious and Alie.

"Well I can say that is very true, Lexa's a gift we were lucky to get." Abby pulled Lexa into a side hug, it was clear to everyone that Abby adored Lexa just as she did the other girls and Bellamy.

"Guess we missed an interesting conversation while we were upstairs." Clarke said to Lexa.

"Sorry we interrupted your um cuddling." Thelonious stated a little awkwardly.

"Seriously Anya?!" Lexa shook her head disbelievingly.

"What? I never said anything about cuddling, my description was a lot more suggestive." Anya wiggled her eyebrows.

"And highly exaggerated, we were just fooling around."

Clarke chuckled. "That doesn't make it sound any more innocent babe."

"I was just tickling Clarke."

"Tickling, huh? So that's what the kids are calling it these days."

" _Alie._ " Lexa whined.

"Sorry I couldn't resist, you made it way too easy."

"You have to admit saying you were tickling her does make it sound like you're just covering something up." Abby helpfully added.

"We weren't doing anything." Lexa blushed profusely, she curled into Clarke and hid her face in the crook of her neck. "Clarke make them stop."

"Aw it's so cute when you blush." Clarke cooed.

"Cut it out Skai Prisa."

"Okay, okay, everyone please stop teasing my gir—" Clarke faked a cough trying to cover her mistake. "Lexa."

Lexa caught the slip and it made her heart soar, she placed a chaste kiss against Clarke's neck. "Thanks babe."

It was a rarity for Lexa to use a pet name other than Skai Prisa, it thrilled Clarke to hear it, she hugged Lexa a little tighter. "Anytime."

 

* * *

 

While everyone was chatting out back Alie took the opportunity to pull Lexa into the kitchen so they could talk privately. "Clarke is amazing."

Lexa beamed. "Yeah she is."

"You two are so perfect together Lexa, it is my professional opinion that you should marry that girl immediately."

Lexa chuckled at Alie's enthusiasm.

"I'm serious, I have never seen two people so perfectly matched."

Lexa took a moment to think about that. "We're puzzle pieces."

"Want to elaborate?"

"We fit perfectly into each others lives, like puzzle pieces we're made to fit together perfectly."

Alie awed. "Marry her, now."

Lexa chuckled again, she was glad Alie liked Clarke but she was getting a bit ahead of herself.

"Both your families are here, one of us could get ordained online right now and you could be married before the year is even over." Alie reasoned.

Thelonius came into the kitchen, a fond smile on his face as he watched his wife and Lexa laughing. "What did I miss?"

"Your wife was just organizing my wedding, apparently it's happening tonight."

Thelonius chuckled. "You and Clarke?"

"I'm just going to point out that I have never told him anything about your relationship with Clarke. Everything he knows about you two is only what you've told him and what he has seen so you see it's super freaking obvious to everyone that you're perfect together."

"I have to agree. It really warms my heart to see you two together." Thelonius told her.

"Well I'm glad you both like her but I don't think there will be a wedding tonight."

"Who's getting married?" Raven appeared in the kitchen and made her way over to one of the cupboards and took out some plates.

"No one." Lexa shrugged nonchalantly.

Raven looked at Lexa suspiciously. "You keeping secrets from me Woods?"

"I would never do that."

"Umhmm I'm sure you wouldn't, just know that if you and Clarke get married and I'm not there to witness it I will kick both your asses."

Thelonius and Alie laughed as they all made their way back outside.

 

* * *

 

Bellamy and his girlfriend arrived not long after that. Octavia practically lunged at her brother, he wrapped his arms around her and spun them both around, when he set her back down Clarke and Raven were quick to embrace him. He introduced them to Echo and they each greeted her with a hug and some jokes about how she was way out of Bellamy's league, when he agreed with them rather than arguing they cooed and awed, it was obvious he was completely smitten with this woman.

Bellamy approached Lincoln, he tried to make himself look as tall as he could and crossed his arms over his chest. "Hey bro."

"I've never heard you call anyone bro before." Clarke stated, tilting her head slightly in confusion.

"You've never called anyone bro in Washington either." Echo pointed out.

"Are you really trying to intimidate him?" Octavia asked in an accusatory manner.

"No, why would I do that?" Bellamy asked defensively.

Octavia scoffed at the obvious lie. "Because you always try to act all tough when you meet anyone we're dating."

"You should know any one of these three could easily kick your ass Bell so you might want to drop the act." Raven informed him.

"Fine." Bellamy huffed. "It's nice to meet you Lincoln." He stretched his hand out for Lincoln to shake but instead he was pulled into a hug by him.

The rest of them all laughed at Bellamy's surprised expression.

"Lincoln's a gentle giant." Raven informed him.

"Can't say I was expecting that."

"Looks can be deceiving." Lincoln stated, finally releasing Bellamy.

"Very true in this case, I'm glad it is though." Bellamy admitted.

"This is Anya, she's the feisty one." Raven spoke drawing his attention to the next member of the Woods family.

"That's a lie, I'm a ball of sunshine."

"Sure you are babe." Raven's words were laced with obvious sarcasm.

"Will a hand shake suffice? I'm not much of a hugger." Anya asked.

"A hand shake is fine by me." He stretched out his hand and momentarily shook her hand. 

"And this is—" Clarke began her introduction but was interrupted.

"Lexa." Bellamy finished with a grin. "Good to finally meet you."

"You too Bellamy."

"Are you a hugger or a shaker?"

"Either one."

"Great." Bellamy pulled her into a hug much like Lincoln had done with him. "Thank you for everything you've done for my sisters, they're much happier since they met you, especially Clarke she's extremely happy with you, I guess you'd know from the special Lexa smile I told you about."

"Shut up Bellamy _God_ you're always trying to embarrass me, why not pick on Raven or Octavia for once?"

"Don't worry Clarke, this is the most embarrassment you'll have to deal with today but those two are going to have to sit there and listen to me tell their significant others all their mortifying childhood stories." Bellamy said menacingly.

"Huh I'm getting off lightly then." Clarke said with relief evident in her voice,

"Try it, I dare you. Between the two of us me and Rae can tell Echo more stories about you than you can tell them about us."

 

* * *

 

They had just gone into the house when they heard the doorbell rang.

"I'll get it." Lexa announced. She swung the door open expecting to find Roan and Luna on the other side of it but instead came face to face with someone she was hoping she would never have to see again.

"Hey Lexa."

Lexa remained frozen in place too shocked to respond.

"Aren't you going to invite me in?"

"Why the hell would I do that?" Lexa spat, ending her temporary moment of shock.

"Don't be like that, we both know you still want me."

Everyone's attention was now focused on the scene unfolding at the front door.

"Who's that?" Clarke asked with a furrowed brow as they all looked over at the door.

"Costia." Anya hissed angrily.

Raven growled ready to go after her but Anya wrapped her arms around Raven's waist and kept her still.

"Time to murder a bitch." Octavia muttered, rolling up her sleeves.

Lincoln copied his sister wrapping his arms around Octavia too holding her in place.

Clarke narrowed her eyes and made her way over to Lexa, nobody tried to stop her knowing that even if they wanted to they couldn't, she would put up one hell of a fight to get to Lexa.

"Come on Lexa, we both know you're going to let me in eventually." Costia argued.

"Hey babe." When Lexa turned her head to look at her, Clarke kissed her just catching the corner of her mouth.

Costia looked disgusted. "Who's this?" She growled at Lexa.

Clarke gave Lexa a subtle look that silently told her she would play along with whatever Lexa decided to say.

"This is the woman I'm going to marry someday." Lexa responded without looking away from Clarke. "Clarke this is Costia." She put as much disgust in her voice as she could when stating her exes name.

"Oh Costia, I've heard a lot about you."

"All good I hope." Costia laughed awkwardly as her eyes darted from Clarke to Lexa and back again.

"No, all pretty awful actually but I do have to thank you because if you hadn't left I never would've met this wonderful woman and I'd be so very lonely in our lovely home." Clarke decided she was going to do her best to make Costia jealous of the life her and Lexa have together.

"You two live together?" There was a hint of anger in Costia's tone.

"Yes we've got a beautiful apartment in the same building as our two best friends in Arkadia, Linc and Anya live just a few blocks away too. The decision to move in with her is one I have never regretted."

"We were together for years and you never asked me to move in with you but you're with this girl for a few months and you're already living together and talking about marrying her?"

"When I met Clarke I knew I would fall deeply in love with her so I knew that moving in with her was the best decision I'd ever made in my life and I was right, my life has only gotten better since I met this beautiful woman and living with her is like a wonderful dream I never have to wake up from." Lexa turned away from Costia to place a kiss on Clarke's temple.

Abby appeared next to them in the doorway. "Is everything alright girls?"

"There's my future mother-in-law now, Costia this is Abby Griffin."

"Hello." Abby immediately remembered Costia, it was hard to forget someone that had hurt one of the people she loved. "Just for the record Lexa you're a daughter to me already." She shared a fond look with Lexa before she turned back to Costia with a mischievous grin. "They're the perfect couple, don't you think?"

Costia gritted her teeth.

"I've never seen two people that are as madly in love as they are." Abby looked fondly at the two who huddled closer together.

Costia huffed. "I can see I made a mistake coming back here."

"Yeah you did, please don't make the same mistake again, you are not welcome here now and you never will be. As far as I'm concerned you and I are strangers to each other."

Costia turned on her heel and stormed down the pathway.

As soon as Lexa shut the door there was a round of applause from the others.

"That was some Oscar worthy acting ladies." Anya smirked.

"I wasn't acting, I simply stated what I know is true." Abby cheekily commented before heading back into the kitchen leaving behind a flustered looking Clarke and Lexa, everyone laughed at how mischievous Abby was being.

"You okay Lex?" Lincoln asked when everyone stopped laughing.

Everyone turned their attention to Lexa who looked to be deep in thought for a moment before a wide smile appeared on her face. "I'm great." She threw her arm around Clarke's shoulder. "I'm really great." She placed a gentle kiss on Clarke's temple. "Thank you, I'm sorry you had to do that."

"I'm not, I got to piss off that bitch and I had a really hot fiancée, I'm not going to complain about any of that."

Lexa chuckled, a look of pure adoration on her face after she did.

"You handled that really well, I can't say I'd be as dignified as you were if Finn tried that crap with me."

"I was only able to get through that because of you."

 

* * *

 

They were all out on the patio swapping stories about how they had met.

"So I had been on patrol for about a year when we get this call about a robbery at Grounders diner." Indra started to explain.

"The first diner I owned." Gustus clarified.

"We got there and found the perp sitting in one of the booths with Gustus towering over her, we found out that he was the owner and he had managed to grab the gun from the suspect and knocked him on his ass. Needless to say the guy wasn't going to test Gus anymore than he already had so he behaved himself until we got there. I was standing near the door with Gus taking his statement while my partner was slapping some cuffs on the perp, the idiot decided he'd try to escape, he elbowed my partner in the face and tried to run for the door but he had to pass us first, I saw him running but before I even had the chance to try to stop him this red tray fly out and hit the guy right in the face and he's gone, he just dropped to the floor and howled in pain. Gus had broken his nose with the tray but he had no sympathy for the guy he even made him clean his own blood off the floor before we took him away." Indra wrapped her arms around her husband and looked up at him adoringly. "I knew he was the man for me right then and there."

"That's my favourite story." Anya said fondly.

"Of course it is, it involves violence." Lincoln pointed out.

"I'd smash a dude's face in for you babe." Raven planted a kiss on her girlfriends cheek.

"That's so romantic." Anya cooed, she moved from her chair and straddled Raven for a very passionate kiss.

Clarke covered Lexa's eyes with her hands.

"Uh Clarke?" Lexa asked confused about the situation.

"Trust me babe you don't wanna see this, it's gross." Clarke explained, Raven flipped her off without breaking the kiss causing everyone to laugh.

 

* * *

 

Raven was sure she deserved an award for everything she did for Clarke and Lexa's relationship. She definitely considered this one of her best plans yet. She had set up Anya's laptop to play some songs that everyone knew, then told Lincoln and Octavia they should dance which they did and were soon joined by Abby and Marcus. All she needed was for Lexa to take the hint and ask Clarke to dance but after countless attempts to discreetly get Lexa's attention she was starting to lose hope. Thankfully she thought of a new approach, she pulled out her phone and sent Lexa a text.

Lexa and Clarke were talking to the Jaha's when Lexa's phone dinged telling her she had a message she frowned wondering who it could be when most of the people she knew were all here, she pulled out her phone and confusion flashed across her face when she saw Raven's name on the screen.

**Raven (23:05)**  
**Ask Clarke to dance.**

Lexa slipped her phone back into her pocket and tapped Clarke's shoulder to get her attention. "Would you like to dance with me?"

"Really?" Clarke asked with a hopeful look on her face.

Lexa nodded, too nervous to respond verbally.

Clarke beamed at her. "I'd love to."

The Jaha's watched them with a look of adoration as Lexa led Clarke over to where the others were dancing. She placed her hands on Clarke's waist and Clarke wrapped her arms around Lexa's shoulders as they started swaying to the sound of Louis Armstrong singing what a wonderful world.

Soon Clarke moved her lips next to Lexa's ear and started softly singing along to the song only loud enough for Lexa to hear.

Lexa had never felt so peaceful, surrounded by people she loved, dancing with the woman she adored, listening to this wonderful woman singing beautifully just for her to hear, she couldn't imagine anything better than this. She looked over towards the grill where Raven was. When she saw that Raven was watching them with a fond smile she smiled back before mouthing a 'thank you' to her.

Raven smiled a little wider and gave her a thumbs up, proud of what she had done for her friends.

Lexa closed her eyes, tuning out everything but the sound of Clarke's voice and the feeling of their bodies pressed close together as they swayed to the music.

 

* * *

 

"You know there's just one teeny problem here." Abby said. 

"What?" Gustus asked.

"Well we've got two gorgeous single women here with no one to kiss at midnight but given that both of these women are interested in women I think there's a clear solution."

Not thinking it through clearly enough Anya foolishly thought that this would be the perfect time to start a discussion about Lexa's issues with love. "Oh Lexa hasn't shared her ridiculous notions about love with any of you?"

Lexa sighed, everything was going so well, she didn't want to talk about this. "Anya, don't."

"Is it really that bad?" Raven asked, not being able to stop herself. 

"Love is weakness. It's harsh but it's how she survives." Anya stated in a condescending tone.

All eyes turned to Lexa.

"My previous experience with love wasn't exactly pleasant, forgive me for being a little cynical." Lexa got up and went inside the house.

Roan was the first to stand, soon followed by Anya but he shook his head at her. "I've got this."

He ventured inside and found Lexa sitting on the staircase. "Can I join you?"

"Sure." Lexa scooted over making room for him to sit on the same step. "Sorry for bringing the mood down, Anya's been harping on about this for a while now and she just won't quit it."

"I'm sure she's just doing it because she wants you to be happy."

Lexa nodded choosing not to argue.

"You know...." Roan started warily, glancing at Lexa before continuing. "Clarke's nothing like Costia."

"I know."

"I know it's hard to trust someone with your heart after you've had someone else hurt it so badly but it's so worth the risk Lex."

"It's not that I don't trust Clarke, I do, it's just that...." Lexa sighed sadly. "It was good with Costia in the beginning and then it all went to hell, the only explanation I could come up with is that at some point I screwed it up so badly that she turned to someone else for love, if that happened with Clarke I don't know how I would survive."

"Lexa, you did nothing wrong when you were dating Costia, if she had truly loved you she would have been there for you through all the tough times, when you love someone that is what you do and the fact that she didn't support you through any of that and actually went to someone else to get what she wanted just shows how selfish she is. She never deserved to have someone who loves as much as you do, she doesn't want love she just wants someone to shower her with attention. You....you would probably sell your own soul to make someone you love happy and so would Clarke, I can see it in the way she looks at you and I haven't even known her for more than a few hours. That girl out there will go above and beyond to make sure you are always happy and you would do the same for her too." He wrapped his arm around her and pulled her into a one armed hug. "Don't be afraid to let yourself love again Lexa."

"Hey." Anya said timidly.

"I'll be outside." Roan gave her shoulder a supportive squeeze before he left her and Anya alone.

There was an awkward silence before Anya decided to sit down next to Lexa. "I'm sorry, I just want you to be happy but I shouldn't force you into starting something with Clarke if you're not ready."

"I think I'm just scared of screwing everything up, I don't want to lose Clarke."

"You know that would never happen, even if you two didn't work out you would find a way to stay in each others lives. In the last few weeks I've seen how close you two are and the connection you two have is unbreakable you are far too important to each other to let anything come between you."

"I know." Lexa admitted. "I've always assumed Costia stopped loving me because I made her miserable but Roan explained it differently and I see now that Costia was never in love with me at all."

"That bitch is incapable of loving anyone but herself, you are the complete opposite Lexa, you have the biggest heart as does Clarke and she would spend an eternity patiently waiting for the day you're willing to let her love you, just don't make her wait too long, okay?"  
  
Lexa could only nod in response.  
  
"Are we done with all the sappy talk now?"  
  
"Yeah let's go ring in the new year."  
  
"Good 'cause I'm certain my girlfriend would've been next in line to come talk to you and you know she would just wind up dragging you into some elaborate plan."

"At least her plans work out....most of the time."

 

* * *

 

When they went back out everyone was glad to see the two cousins had worked things out. Lexa noticed a change in Clarke that worried her, she seemed to be hesitant approaching her and when she did she just awkwardly patted Lexa's shoulder and gave her a smile that looked forced.

After a few minutes Lexa took Clarke away from everyone else just far enough that no one could hear them, wanting to fix whatever was wrong between them. "Are you okay Clarke?"

"I'm fine."

"Clarke it's obvious there's something bothering you." She brushed some hair out of Clarke's face. "Is this about what Anya said?"

"I....It's just...." Clarke sighed. "Is that really how you feel about love?"

"It was."

Clarke having missed that she had said it in the past tense felt her stomach drop at the thought of Lexa having given up on love. "Maybe life should be about more than just surviving, don't we deserve better than that?"

Lexa took a deep breath before responding. "Maybe we do." She leaned in connecting her lips with Clarke's.

The first touch of her lips was tentative, gentle and hesitant.

It took Clarke a second to catch up and realize that this was really happening, when she did she pressed a little harder into the kiss. It was everything Clarke had wanted and nothing like she had imagined, it was so much better. Somehow the sound of hoots and hollers broke through Clarke's hazy mind. She was suddenly very aware that both of their families were watching. She frowned slightly at the interruption.

Lexa pulled back a little to change the angle of the kiss but as she leaned in again Clarke stopped her.

"Not yet."

Lexa pulled back, the look in her eyes was pained but she gave Clarke a slight nod.

Clarke looked at her for a short moment before turning to glare at their families.

Everyone looked away from them, looking as busy as they could.

Clarke turned back to Lexa catching a brief look of disappointment on her face before she schooled her expression.

There was an explosion of noise after that as the clock had just struck midnight.

Clarke leaned in and placed a kiss on Lexa's cheek before resting her forehead against Lexa's. "Happy New Year Lex."

Lexa wasn't sure where this left them but she felt relieved by Clarke's actions. "Happy New Year Clarke."

"Happy New Year you two." Abby called out above the hustle and bustle of all the others.

They broke apart and headed over to join their families.

 

* * *

 

It turned out to be a pretty terrific night for all of them, their families had formed a strong bond after spending only a few hours together.

The rest of the night was spent chatting happily amongst their families, learning more and more about each other through traded stories.

The older adults were already making plans for shared holiday celebrations, Bellamy and Echo had made plans with Luna and Roan for a night out together back in Washington. After learning that Luna grew up in foster care and didn't have any family to spend holidays with an open invitation was extended to both her and Roan to join them for any holidays, special events or if they simply wanted to spend some time in Polis they were always welcome to stay at Gus and Indra's house, Lexa was thrilled that everyone had welcomed them into their family so easily.

At the end of the night Lexa guided Clarke into her room. Clarke pulled Commander Coon out of her bag and placed it on the bed beside Wanheda before she left the room to change into her pyjamas.

Lexa climbed under her new fur blanket for the first time while Clarke was getting changed. "I wanted to wait until we were together to sleep under this blanket." She explained to Clarke when she came back into the room.

"You really like it?"

"I love it Clarke, I can't wait to get back and get it all set up. You, me, Wanheda and Commander Coon will be so cosy in our own little world."

"Sounds heavenly." Clarke climbed in under the blanket taking a moment to admire how soft it was before cuddling up to Lexa and sighing contentedly. "I've missed this."

Lexa wrapped her arm around Clarke. "Me too."

"Goodnight Lexa." Clarke kissed the corner of Lexa's lips.

"Goodnight Clarke, sweet dreams." Lexa copied Clarke pressing a gentle kiss to the corner of her mouth before pulling her a little closer.

They both fell asleep not knowing what their relationship was now but hoping that the events of tonight would lead to something more, something they both desperately wanted.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If there's any mistakes I'm sorry my minds not really working so great at the moment


	11. The dorkiest way possible.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> -Awkward tension  
> -A painful encounter  
> -The aftermath

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So so sorry for how long it took to update this, I hope it was worth the wait.

No one knew what was happening between Clarke and Lexa.

It had been two weeks since they had all come back to their apartments and everything was almost exactly as it was before they left which was confusing for everyone, it was like Clarke and Lexa's kiss had never happened.

The biggest differences were that Clarke and Lexa had stopped giving each other their innocent cheek and temple kisses and they no longer curled up together on the couch, if they were sat near each other they would keep a small amount of distance between them.

No one felt comfortable bringing up the subject, afraid that it might cause even more tension between the two if they did. They did discuss it in private and in their groupchat with Abby but no one could figure it out.

 

* * *

 

_Thursday afternoon._

Lexa's head was a mess.

Things with Clarke had been strange ever since they had come back to their apartment after the holidays. She had thought they would talk about the kiss at some stage but Clarke never brought it up and Lexa was too afraid to say anything about it, she thought that maybe Clarke didn't want to be anything more than just friends and that she regretted the kiss. They still shared a bed but rather than cuddling up like they used to they now just lay side by side holding hands but in the morning they always woke up to find their bodies tangled up, unconsciously seeking each others embrace during the night and they would awkwardly pull apart and go through their morning routines in silence until one of their friends would show up and break the awkward silence.

That morning Lexa and Clarke had accidentally crashed into each other in the kitchen. They used to be so in sync but now it seemed like they couldn't do anything right around each other, Clarke had sighed sadly when it happened and then wrapped her arms around Lexa holding her close for a few moments before silently slipping away out of sight. Lexa kept replaying the whole incident over and over again in her head since then, she had already been to two of her classes and was now on her way across campus to her next one but she couldn't focus on what she was supposed to be learning because she was just so confused about her relationship with Clarke. She had considered just skipping the rest of her classes and going home to think about everything more clearly but had ultimately decided not to because Clarke might have done the same and then she would have to explain why she had left college early. She knew she needed to figure out how to fix things with Clarke soon, she knew if she kept going like this the stress it was causing her would start to show in her college work.

She was so caught up in her thoughts that she hadn't noticed the two strangers who had been following her for nearly ten minutes. She turned down an alleyway she often used when she needed to get across the campus quickly, it wasn't a very popular route but Lexa would occasionally pass a student in a rush using it.

"Well, well, well, look who it is boys." A familiar voice boomed through the alley.

Lexa head shot up to find Finn coming towards her, there were two boys with him, one on either side who spread out when they got closer completely blocking Lexa's path, she rolled her eyes at their pathetic attempt to intimidate her. "Get out of my way Collins." She moved forward determined to get past him.

"Oh you're going nowhere bitch." He shoved her back a step into someone she hadn't known was stood behind her, she quickly glanced back to see that there were two more boys stood there, both looking just as menacing as Finn and the other boys. "You hurt my pride Lexa, I don't like it when people do that."

Lexa rolled her eyes again, every word that came out of his mouth just showed how immature he was. "What are you talking about?"

"I've heard you've been showing people a certain video of us." Lexa could see the anger in his eyes and hear it just as clearly in his voice.

"What do you want Finn? If it's an apology then you might as well give up now because you won't be getting one."

"Not an apology I'm after." Finn signaled one of his friends behind her and she received a hard kick to the back of her knee causing her to fall to one knee.

"You need to learn to keep your mouth shut." Finn said menacingly as he stood over her. "It's time for me and my boys to have a little fun." He had a sinister grin on his face as he wound back his arm before delivering his first hard blow hitting Lexa's cheek, knocking her to the ground with the force.

She didn't have long to react before the other boys closed in on her, she was just able to cover her face with her arms and hands and curl her legs up to shield her stomach, she knew there was no point in trying to fight when she was outnumbered, her best option was to just protect herself to the best of her ability in the hope she might have a chance of escaping with a limited amount of injuries.

They were relentless in their assault, someone was kicking her back, one of them was punching her ribs, she assumed that must have been Finn seeing as he was the one harbouring a grudge against her whereas the rest of them seemed to just be following orders, kicking her wherever they could.

The pain she already felt was near unbearable but there was no way she was going to give Finn the satisfaction of seeing her cry, she was willing to use all of her remaining energy to make sure not one single tear would escape from her eyes. She focused her mind on the one thing that could get her through this, Clarke. She pictured her eyes, her smile, her laugh, the way she would stretch when she had been sitting at her easel for too long, the look of pure bliss on her face when she would take her first sip of coffee in the morning, any and every detail she could possibly think of about the woman she adored.

Her thoughts were interrupted when she heard a yell in the distance and suddenly the boys were no longer beating her, she heard one of them say "run!" in a panicked tone as another ordered "split up".

She felt relief flood through her hearing their footsteps getting further and further away, only now that she was no longer actively trying to distract herself did she realize the full extent of her injuries. There were bruises, cuts and scrapes for sure, possibly some fractures or even breaks. She kept her eyes closed, not wanting to see her injuries and confirm her suspicions just yet but she was also worried that it might not be over yet.

She winced when she felt a hand on her arm but the touch wasn't hostile in any way. "Hey It's okay, they're gone now." Lexa recognized the voice, she slowly pulled her arms away from her face to see that she was right in thinking the voice belonged to Harper. Lexa could tell from the horrified look on her face that the injuries must be bad. "Oh shit....guys!" Harper called out looking down the alley, Lexa couldn't see who it was she was calling. "Guys!!! It's Lexa." Harper yelled more urgently.

 

* * *

 

Lincoln and Octavia had just entered the Grounders diner closest to the college. Lincoln had asked Octavia if she wanted to meet up for her lunch break and since the secret was now out about Gus owning the chain of diners he felt more comfortable using the family card his father had given to each of them so they could eat for free there whenever they wanted.

They were just about to sit down at one of the empty booths when Octavia's phone started ringing.

"Hel—" Octavia suddenly stopped mid word causing Lincoln to look at her curiously. "Monty.... _Monty_ slow down I can't understand you."

Lincoln turned to fully face Octavia who was looking more concerned by the second.

"What?!" Octavia yelled. "Where?" She grabbed Lincoln's forearm and pulled him towards the door. "We'll be there in five."

"What's wrong?" He asked as soon as Octavia ended the call.

"Lexa's hurt, we gotta go."

 

* * *

 

"Lexa!!!" Lincoln yelled, seeing his cousin barely conscious on a bench he ran over and dropped to his knees in front of her looking at all her injuries.

" _Fuck_ " Octavia muttered, taking in her friends injured state. "You said Finn did this?"

Monty nodded. "And his asshole friends, we saw it happening and we managed to scare them off but we didn't know it was Lexa until they were gone."

"We have to get her to the hospital, now." Lincoln said as he carefully scooped Lexa up into his arms.

"Thanks for looking out for her guys." Octavia said as she opened the door of Lincoln's truck to get Lexa in there.

"Keep us updated on how she is, alright?" Bryan asked.

"We will." Lincoln replied, dashing around to the driver's side of the truck.

 

* * *

 

"Lex I know it's hard but you gotta stay awake for me, okay?" Octavia pleaded, she gently patted Lexa's knee hoping it wouldn't hurt her. "Why aren't they answering?" She huffed, ending the call to Clarke and trying Raven again instead.

"They must still be in class." Lincoln answered before cursing under his breath at the traffic lights.

"Raven finishes first, I'll text her and tell her to get Clarke." Octavia decided.

Lincoln nodded his agreement. "Anya should be getting ready for work, I don't know if she'll answer or not."

"I'll try calling if she doesn't answer I'll just have to text her too." Octavia quickly checked on Lexa again, her eyes were partially open, she seemed to be completely dazed. "Come on Commander keep those eyes open, I know you can do it."

 

* * *

 

**Octavia (14:23)**  
**Get Clarke and come to the hospital, Lexa's hurt.**

Reading the words on her screen hit Raven like a punch in the gut, she leaned against the wall for support as she took a few deep breaths to try to calm herself, she knew she needed to be strong for Lexa and Clarke.

After figuring out which class Clarke would be in at that time she made her way to the classroom as quickly as she could, along the way she attempted to call Octavia but got no answer. She knocked on the door quite violently when she reached the classroom, the professor was quick to open the door and when he did Raven explained to the professor that there was an emergency and she needed to take Clarke out of class early, he didn't question it, it was clear from the look on Raven's face that something was seriously wrong.

The man made his way over to his students work space. "Miss Griffin you are needed elsewhere." He gestured toward the door where Raven was waiting. 

"Sorry about this." Clarke apologized, she figured Raven was just screwing around but she couldn't tell her professor that so she just had to go along with whatever was going on.

"It's fine Miss Griffin, I hope everything works out okay." He gave Clarke a sympathetic look but she couldn't quite figure out why. "I can clear up your work space, you and your friend should get going."

She frowned, growing even more confused but nodded and grabbed her bag before quickly making her way to the door.

As soon as they were outside of the room Clarke asked "Rae what the hell is going on?"

Raven grabbed Clarke's arm and started pulling her along behind her while she explained. "I got a text from O telling me to get you and take you to the hospital, she said Lexa's hurt."

"Hurt? How bad is it? What happened? Is she going to be okay?" Clarke questioned frantically.

Raven stopped and turned to face Clarke. "Listen Clarke I know you're freaking out but right now I know as much as you do, we just need to keep calm, get there as quick as we can and just hope that she's alright."

"You're right." Clarke took a few shuddering breaths and furiously wiped at the tears that had started streaming down her cheeks. "Let's go."

 

* * *

 

"Anya!" Raven called to get her girlfriends attention as they spotted her at the hospital entrance, desperately looking around for any familiar faces. 

"Finally!! I've been looking everywhere for you, what's going on?" Anya asked once she reached them.

"We don't know we just got here." Clarke responded.

"I got a text from Octavia telling me to get here as quick as I could, that Lexa was hurt but it said nothing else and she's not answering when I call." Anya's fear was evident in her tone.

Raven took her girlfriends hand as a small gesture of support. "We got the same."

"Do you know what department they're in?" Anya questioned.

"Probably the ER if she hasn't been seen yet." Clarke informed them. "Try calling O again I'm gonna see if mom's here, she might know what's going on." She went in the main entrance of the hospital, heading for the nearest nurses station.

Anya and Raven followed closely behind trying to call Lincoln and Octavia.

After a few minutes Clarke returned to Anya and Raven. "Mom's not on duty today but I called her and she said she's on her way now, hopefully she'll be able to find out what's happening."

"Linc and O still aren't answering." Raven told her.

"We should head over to the ER and see if we can find them." Clarke decided, the other two nodding their agreement.

 

* * *

 

They soon found Lincoln and Octavia who explained that Lexa had been taken away on a gurney but they had no idea where she was or what was going on, a nurse had told them that they would be informed as soon as possible but due to a bad car crash earlier that day the ER was in total chaos.

Clarke knew that they wouldn't be getting any answers any time soon, all they could do was wait for Abby to get there so she could pull some strings and find out what was going on.

While they were waiting they decided to call Monty to find out what exactly had happened. He explained to them that he and Harper had been hanging out with Bryan and Miller and it was only by chance they had spotted what was happening, he said that Miller was the first to intervene and they had all been quick to follow, luckily they had managed to scare off Finn and his friends fairly quickly, it was then that Harper realized it was Lexa they had been attacking and she informed the rest of them, Miller and Bryan had helped Lexa up and brought her to the nearest bench while Monty tried calling Clarke but when she didn't answer he called Octavia next.

By the time they had finished the call Anya was fuming, she pushed herself up off the chair and started heading towards the exit.

Lincoln grabbed her wrist to stop her. "Where are you going?"

Anya pulled her wrist away from him. "I'm not going to just sit here and let that asshole get away with hurting her." She snapped.

"Anya calm down, there's nothing we can do about that right now." Lincoln tried to reason.

"No, I'm going to find that scumbag." Anya stormed away towards the door.

Raven stood up and sighed, she put her hand on Lincoln's shoulder and gave it a squeeze. "I'll calm her down, call me if there's any news about Woods."

 

* * *

 

Abby arrived not long after Anya and Raven had disappeared. Clarke quickly explained what they knew to her mother and then Abby left them to go in search of Lexa. Clarke was relieved that her mother was there but it didn't make her worry any less about Lexa. She hated the idea of Lexa being in pain and likely scared with only strangers around to comfort her, at least with her mother there Lexa would have a familiar face to focus on.

 

* * *

 

They were still waiting for Abby to come back when two familiar faces entered the ER department.

"Mom, dad over here." Lincoln called.

The couple rushed over to their son.

"Lincoln has there been any news yet?" Gustus asked.

"Not yet, Abby's trying to find out what's going on."

"How did you get here so quickly?" Octavia asked knowing how long the journey from Polis to Arkadia was.

"I took one of the cruisers from work." Indra explained.

"Won't you get in trouble for that?"

Indra shook her head. "Polis isn't a very high crime area, there's always a few cruisers available and I called them to explain so it's fine."

"Where's Anya?" Gustus asked noticing his daughters absence for the first time.

Lincoln sighed sadly. "She lost it, Raven's trying to calm her down."

"I'm so sorry, this is all my fault." Clarke admitted quietly.

"How is this your fault?" Indra asked, confused about what Clarke had to do with what happened. 

"Finn is my ex, he only has a problem with her because she tried to protect me from him."

Indra sat down next to Clarke. "His actions are not your fault Clarke. None of us blame you for this, Lexa definitely won't and you shouldn't blame yourself either."

"She's right, Lexa would hate to think that you were blaming yourself for something you had no control of." Gustus added, crouching down in front of Clarke and giving her a comforting smile.

 

* * *

 

Anya and Raven returned not too long after Gustus and Indra had arrived. Raven had managed to calm her girlfriend down pretty quickly but her anger soon turned to fear and sorrow for her cousin so Raven had sat with her and allowed her to cry away from everyone else knowing she wouldn't want anyone else seeing her like that.

She looked guiltily at her parents expecting a lecture about controlling her temper but instead they just bundled her up in a hug, relieved that she was okay and Raven had managed to calm her down before she could go after Finn.

 

* * *

 

"I've seen Lexa and I've spoken to the doctor that treated her." Abby told the group after she had quickly greeted Gustus and Indra.

"Is she okay?" Indra asked worriedly.

"She's okay."

"How bad are her injuries?" Gustus asked.

"Nothing too major, it could've been a lot worse, she has mostly defensive wounds so she did manage to block a lot of hits that would have caused her injuries to be much worse. She does have a concussion so she'll need to take it easy for at least a week, it looks like she managed to shield her face and some of her head with her arms and hands but the back of her head was unprotected so it's likely she was either kicked there or she could have hit her head against the ground at some point during the attack. Her ribs on her left side are badly bruised but thankfully not fractured or broken. Her arms and legs are badly bruised too as is her back. She has a small bit of bruising on her jaw but that's the only damage visible on her face. They're going to keep her in overnight for observation."

"Is she in a lot of pain?" Clarke asked quietly.

"She was but they gave her some pretty strong painkillers and she fell asleep not long after that."

"Can we see her?"

"Yes but she's sleeping right now. They usually only allow two people in at a time but I told them Lexa's family so they won't have a problem letting a few more people in just as long as we don't overcrowd the room it should be fine."

Gustus decided that Clarke should be allowed to stay with Lexa all the time while the rest of them would take turns going into the room to ensure it wouldn't get too crowded. Clarke sat diligently by Lexa's side gingerly holding her hand as she rested.  

 

* * *

  

"Guys she's waking up." Clarke said to Lincoln and Anya as she noticed Lexa starting to slowly open her eyes.

Lincoln rushed out of the room but was back only a moment later with Abby.

"Lexa can you hear me?" Abby asked her gently.

Lexa tried to nod but winced at the pain it caused her.

"Could everyone wait outside for a few minutes? We just need to give her a little time to adjust." Abby said to them with a careful look.

Clarke could tell her mother was trying to avoid them having to see Lexa in this much pain but knowing Lexa she would want the same thing so she decided to comply with her mother's request and followed Lincoln and Anya out of the room.

After helping Lexa to sit up in the bed Abby quickly checked her wounds again to make sure they hadn't missed any injuries.

"Do you know where you are?"

"Hospital." Lexa croaked, her voice slightly hoarse.

"Yes." Abby picked up a glass of water, placed a straw in it and held it while Lexa took a sip. "You're alright now sweetie, you're safe and we're going to take good care of you."

"Clarke's here?"

"Of course she is and so is everyone else."

"Is she okay?"

Abby smiled fondly, even when she was injured her main priority was making sure Clarke was alright. "She's fine, she's just worried about you. She's been by your side since they said we could come in."

Lexa let a small smile show hearing Clarke had stayed with her. "Thanks for sending everyone out until I was settled."

"I figured you wouldn't want them to see you in pain."

Lexa hummed her agreement. "They don't need to be any more worried than they already are."

"On a scale of one to ten how bad is the pain?"

"It's not so bad." Lexa said despite wincing when she moved slightly. "Should I feel so worn out though?"

"That's completely normal and expected after having taken such a bad beating. It's a good sign though it means that your body is working to repair the damage, you're going to feel drained for a while especially for the first few days and the pain meds will make you feel pretty drowsy too."

Lexa asked her a few more questions about her injuries and how she had gotten to the hospital, her memory was fuzzy and she could only remember little bits beyond Finn and his friends cornering her so Abby filled her in on what she knew.

 

* * *

 

Lincoln, Anya, Gustus and Indra had all gone into Lexa's room after Abby came out and told them Lexa was ready to see them. They had all agreed that Clarke should go in after them to spend a few minutes alone with Lexa before Octavia and Raven would go in. Clarke waited outside the room pacing back and forth nervously, when the four Woods family members emerged they did so with smiles on their faces but Clarke could still see the sadness in their eyes.

When Indra came out of the room she locked eyes with her, she could easily see the worry in Clarke's eyes. "She is strong Clarke, she will be okay."

Clarke nodded and took a deep breath trying to calm her nerves.

Indra grasped Clarke's forearm and gave it a gentle squeeze. "Thank you for being here for her."

"Of course, I'll always be there for Lexa whenever she needs me."

Clarke responded with such determination and honesty that Indra couldn't stop herself from smiling widely at her. "She's lucky to have you."

"I'm lucky to have found someone as incredible as her."

Indra pulled her into a tight hug before she disappeared down the corridor leaving Clarke alone.

Clarke took one last calming breath before moving forward and pushing open the door.

A soft smile appeared on Lexa's face when she saw her favourite girl come into the room. "Hey you."

"Hi." Clarke replied quietly, she moved to the bed and sat on the empty space by Lexa's legs. She awkwardly stroked Lexa's arm, unsure of how much physical contact Lexa could handle in her injured state.

"Clarke I'm not going to break if you hug me." Lexa spoke gently wanting to ease the tense atmosphere.

Clarke carefully wrapped her arms around Lexa and relaxed when she felt Lexa wrap her arms around her too, they stayed like that for a few minutes in complete silence, neither really knowing what to say, Clarke was the one to end the silence. "I was so scared Lexa." Her voice was barely audible, if she wasn't hugging Lexa then she probably wouldn't have been heard.

"I know." Lexa stroked Clarke's back trying to calm her worries. "I'm sorry."

Clarke huffed as a few tears she couldn't stop rolled down her cheeks. "What are you apologizing for? You didn't plan on getting attacked and it's not your jackass ex that did this, I'm the one that should be saying sorry."

Lexa pulled back a little to look at Clarke with a confused frown. "Clarke you are not responsible for what that asshole did."

"I don't get why he did it, I know he's an asshole to me but to beat you up just because you're my friend is just evil." Clarke responded, avoiding acknowledging that she wasn't to blame.

Lexa sighed, not missing the way Clarke changed the conversation. "If I tell you his reason it stays between us, okay?"

"Why?" It was Clarke's turn to frown confusedly.

"Because Anya and Raven will blame themselves for this too if they ever find out and I don't want that to happen."

"What do they have to do with this?"

"The video, he thought I was showing it to people and he said it hurt his pride. I assume he was talking about when Anya and Raven had their run in with him and Anya told him she had seen the video."

"His pride?! He put you in the fucking hospital because of his damn pride?!" Clarke yelled furiously.

"Clarke...."

"I'll kill him." Clarke spat the words full of anger.

"Clarke!" Lexa raised her voice, finally getting her attention. "I don't want you to kill him, I don't want you anywhere near him."

"But—"

"Promise me you'll stay away from him Clarke." Lexa took her hand and intertwined their fingers. "Please?"

Clarke immediately softened. "Fine, I promise but I'm not happy about this."

"That's okay, you're allowed to be angry." 

"I knew I should've made Raven delete that video."

"It's not her fault, no one is to blame here but Finn."

"I know but if I had just made her delete it then Finn wouldn't have a reason to come after you."

"He probably would have found another reason, people like that don't need a good excuse to hurt people."

"You're right." Clarke sighed. "I wish I never met him. Why couldn't I have met you back then instead?"

Lexa knew that for now this was the closest she would get to Clarke accepting that she wasn't to blame for this. "Wrong place, wrong time but now you've got me and I'm going nowhere."

"I'm gonna take that as a promise and hold you to it."

"You should."

They both smiled fondly at each other.

There was a quiet knock at the door before it was pushed open to reveal Octavia and Raven.

"Is it okay for us to come in now?" Raven asked.

Clarke nodded and gestured for them to come in.

"Hey guys." Lexa greeted them with a soft smile.

"You know if you didn't want to go to class there are better ways of getting out of it than ending up in the emergency room."

" _Raven._ " Clarke scolded.

Raven looked at them both apologetically. "Sorry, you know I make awful jokes when i'm worried."

"Ironically I was actually considering skipping a few classes before this happened."

"You were? Why?" Clarke asked.

Lexa gave a small shrug. "I just wasn't feeling up for it, I guess." She didn't want to admit that it was because she had been worrying about what was going on with her and Clarke.

"I wasn't exactly wrong then." Raven let a small smile show.

Lexa chuckled. "No, I suppose you weren't." Lexa noticed that Octavia was still lingering by the door looking a little nervous. "You okay over there O?"

"Yeah It's just....are you really okay?" Octavia asked quietly.

"I'm a bit sore but I'm alright. Abby filled me in on what happened, thank you for helping me O."

Octavia relaxed enough to move closer to the bed. "Lincoln was the one that was driving."

"Yes but you kept me awake which Abby said was very important in those circumstances and you made all the calls to let everyone know."

Octavia shrugged. "It's no big deal."

"Well it is to me, I'm lucky to have a friend as great as you looking out for me."

Lexa could visibly see the remaining tension leave Octavia as she smiled and said "I'm really glad you're okay Lex."

"If it's any consolation you still look hot and even more badass than usual."

"Seriously Raven?" Clarke asked disbelievingly.

"What?" Raven feigned ignorance. "That one wasn't a joke it was an observation."

Lexa gave Clarke's hand a squeeze to get her to look at her instead of frowning at Raven. "You know what they say, laughter is the best medicine."

 

* * *

 

Not long after that the Jaha's arrived. Clarke, Octavia and Raven left the room after Lincoln had text Octavia to tell her about their arrival, they all knew they were probably worried and their worries wouldn't subside until they saw Lexa themselves. While they were in the room two police officers had shown up to talk to Lexa, it was hospital policy to report any assault cases, they had asked the Jaha's to leave while they spoke but Lexa said she would prefer it if they stayed, Thelonious stood protectively by Lexa's bed while Alie sat beside her with her hand on Lexa's knee, it was a comforting gesture to remind Lexa that they were there for her if she needed them. They took Lexa's statement although she couldn't remember most of what had happened she told them everything she could. They took her contact details and were about to leave when the Jaha's started questioning the police about what they were going to do about Finn, Lexa couldn't stop herself from smiling at the way the Jaha's were acting like overprotective parents. They were so aggressive about getting justice for her and keeping her safe that the two police officers looked a little afraid of them and seemed to be anxious to get out of the room as soon as they could.

 

* * *

 

Abby went to the canteen with Clarke to get some coffee while the Jaha's were in visiting Lexa.

"Are you okay honey?" Abby asked after they had sat in silence for a few minutes.

"Yeah I'm fine, just thinking."

Abby reached across the table and gently squeezed Clarke's hand. "Lexa's going to be fine Clarke."

Clarke sighed sadly. "This wouldn't have happened if Lexa hadn't met me, all I've done is make her life even more difficult."

Abby frowned, she couldn't believe Clarke would think that. "You know when Lexa woke up all she wanted to know was if you were there and if you were okay, you are the most important person to her Clarke and there is no way she would ever blame you for this." Abby could see that Clarke was still struggling with her guilt. "Don't ever think Lexa would be better off without you, that girl absolutely worships you and you have improved her life so much Clarke, you inspired her to open up to people again, there will never come a time when Lexa ever regrets the day she met you."

"I still can't help feeling responsible for this mess, it's not just about Finn...." Clarke trailed off thinking about the awkward tension there had been between her and Lexa recently, she couldn't help but think that Lexa might have chosen the route she used just to avoid having another awkward encounter with her.

Abby could see the regret in Clarke's sad eyes and she had a pretty good idea about what she had been thinking. "Clarke I know you two have had some issues recently—"

"Mom I don't want to talk about that right now."

"Just hear me out honey." She patted Clarke's hand in a comforting manner. "If Finn and his friends weren't interrupted today and we were dealing with an even worse situation what would your last memory of Lexa have been?"

Clarke was shocked that her mother had asked that but she knew the answer immediately. "An awkward wave goodbye." She responded quietly, an almost sick look on her face at the thought of that potentially being her last memory of Lexa. "I was scared." She sighed sadly. "When we kissed on New Years Eve it was....unbelievable, better than I ever could have imagined but it scared me, she is the best thing that has ever happened to me, I couldn't lose her, if we were to start dating I might screw it all up and lose her so I backed off and tried to act like the kiss never happened but that made things between us weird and now...." Clarke took a deep breath, willing herself not to cry again. "I could've lost her today. I don't know what I would do without her mom."

Abby moved around the small table to hug her daughter, she didn't say anything again until she sat back down. "You need to decide what kind of relationship you want with Lexa from this point on, if this day has taught us anything it's that you never know what's going to happen. You shouldn't waste the time you have with her Clarke, make every moment one you will treasure."

Clarke nodded determined to do just that from now on. "I will."

 

* * *

 

"Guys please go home and get some rest." Lexa pleaded. "Don't be worrying about me I'm in good hands here, alright?"

Anya, Lincoln, Octavia and Raven were obviously exhausted but they were all determined to stick by Lexa for as long as possible.

"Fine but you call if you need us, okay? Doesn't matter what time it is." Anya said, although it sounded more like a demand than a offer of assistance.

"As soon as everyone's gone I'm going to go to sleep, I can almost guarantee I won't wake up again until morning so there's no reason to be staying up waiting for a call that won't come."

"Is there anything you need?" Octavia asked her.

"There is actually a few things. I want you guys to get some food you're all probably starving so make sure you eat something soon."

"I can pick up some food for everyone on the way home." Lincoln offered.

"Please make sure Clarke eats too, I know she'll probably argue that she's not hungry but she really is."

"We'll threaten to tell Mama G if she refuses." Octavia smirked knowing that Clarke would force herself to eat just to avoid a lecture from her mother.

"Lastly I think one of you might want to stay with Clarke tonight, I don't want her to be alone." She said to Octavia and Raven.

"We'll both stay." Raven decided.

"You don't have to worry Lex, we'll look after her." Octavia assured her.

 

* * *

 

"Are you sure you'll be okay here by yourself? I can ask if I can stay with you." 

Lexa smiled softly at Clarke's concern for her. "I'll be fine Clarke, go home and get some rest it's been a long day for you, you're probably exhausted."

"You realize you're the one that's hurt, right?"

"I know but today must have been an emotional roller-coaster for you and that's exhausting enough but add in the fact that you likely haven't eaten since breakfast and that would completely drain you of energy."

Clarke shook her head fondly. "Always so caring."

Lexa reached for Clarke's hand and gave it a gentle squeeze. "Go home, eat, sleep, relax and I'll speak to you tomorrow, okay?"

Clarke sighed, knowing she would much rather stay there with Lexa. "Alright."

Lexa gave her a thankful smile for agreeing. "Goodnight Clarke."

"Goodnight Lexa." Clarke made a move to leave the room but stalled by the door momentarily when she reached it seemingly lost in thought. She thought about the conversation she had with her mother earlier and decided she was done with letting her fear of losing Lexa stop her from being with her, she moved back over to Lexa's hospital bed. She leaned in closer to Lexa and with the barest bit of space left between their lips she stopped for just a few seconds to give Lexa the chance to stop her if she wanted to, when Lexa didn't pull away Clarke closed the remaining distance between them, the kiss was gentle and careful, Clarke was worried that too much pressure might hurt Lexa but to both of them it was perfect. When she pulled back she watched Lexa's eyes flutter open, she drew in a shaky breath and asked "okay?"

"More than okay." Lexa whispered in response, a smile slowly appearing on her face as the realization hit her that Clarke had just kissed her.

Clarke pulled back a little more, a shy smile on her face. "I better go now before the others come looking for me."

Lexa nodded, smile still showing. "See you soon Clarke."

"Umhmm sweet dreams Lex." She leaned in to give Lexa one more chaste kiss before finally exiting the room. 

 

* * *

 

"You okay?" Octavia asked when Clarke met them back in the waiting area.

Clarke nodded in response. 

"I left my phone in there, I'll catch up with you guys in a minute." Raven announced quickly setting off to retrieve it, she entered the room and grabbed her phone from the table beside the hospital bed. She looked at Lexa planning to say another quick goodbye before leaving but stopped when she saw the goofy look on Lexa's face. "You okay Woods?"

"Yeah." Lexa responded distractedly.

Raven cocked her head to the side, silently analyzing Lexa's odd behaviour but the girl was completely unaware that she had piqued Raven's curiosity. "Alright I'll see you tomorrow."

"See ya."

When Raven caught up with the others again she looked at Clarke suspiciously. "Griff what did you do to Woods?"

Clarke frowned. "What? Nothing, why?"

"She's in there grinning like the Cheshire cat."

Clarke couldn't hide the smile that appeared on her face hearing that Lexa looked so happy. She decided she wasn't going to tell anyone what had happened between them until her and Lexa had the chance to talk about it but that didn't stop the others from trying to trick her into revealing what had happened.

 

* * *

 

By the time everyone was gone it was long past visiting hours. Marcus had come by after Lincoln and the girls had gone home, he had only checked his phone on his way out of the university when he was finished for the day and had rushed over to the hospital as soon as he saw Abby's messages, he didn't stay for too long because he didn't want to take up too much of her time with her family, he told her not to worry about her classes, that he would explain the situation to her other teachers. Indra and Gustus were spending the night at Abby's house so they could visit Lexa again in the morning before they went back to Polis, Abby had let them say goodbye to her by themselves while she went to find out what had been done with Lexa's clothes and bag when she was brought in, she was successful in her quest and had returned with all of Lexa's things in a bag, she made sure Lexa had her phone nearby so she could call one of them if she needed anything before she said goodnight to her and told her she would be back in the morning and would bring a charger with her so Lexa could recharge her phone if it needed it. The Jaha's were the last to leave, they wanted to stay as long as they could since they had to go back to Polis that night. After they left Lexa checked her phone to find an abundance of missed calls and texts from Bellamy, Echo, Roan, Luna, Monty, Harper, Miller, Bryan, Jasper and even one from Jasper's girlfriend Maya who she had only met a few times, all of them asking if she was okay, if she needed anything, she laughed at both Roan and Bellamy's messages both stating they would happily go to prison for killing Finn.

Once she had responded to them all she finally allowed herself to think about everything that had happened that day. She should be angry, she knows she should, maybe she should cry or feel even the smallest bit of sadness but she can't, she doesn't because all she feels is the overwhelming love that she was surrounded by today. She had people that cared about her, people that put their lives on hold to spend a full day sitting in a hospital just to be there for her, who drove for two hours just to come see her, people who were willing to argue with police officers to ensure they were doing everything they could to protect her, people who went above and beyond for her.

She had never felt as loved as she did that day, she thought she must be the luckiest girl in the world to be surrounded by so many loving and caring people.

 

* * *

 

_The next day._

Indra, Gustus and Abby were her first visitors of the day. Abby had made them all breakfast and then came to the hospital with them following close behind in the cruiser Indra had borrowed. She only stayed for a few minutes before going to check on her other patients to give Lexa some time alone with her aunt and uncle. When Lexa had fallen asleep some time later Indra and Gustus left the room only to find Anya coming up the corridor towards the room. They explained to her that Lexa was sleeping and decided instead to go to Lincoln's workplace to see if he was free to have lunch with the three of them while Lexa was resting.

"I spoke to Clarke." Abby informed her as she examined her a short while after she had woken up.

"Is she okay?"

"She's fine. She couldn't decide whether or not she should call you because she wanted to talk to you but she was worried she would wake you up. Octavia had to confiscate her phone to stop her from calling you in the middle of the night just to ask if you were okay." Abby chuckled imagining Clarke trying to get her phone back. "They spent last night coming up with this elaborate schedule to take shifts taking care of you when you're discharged."

Lexa frowned. "They don't have to do that, I can manage by myself."

"Actually no you can't, not without over-exerting yourself and if you're going to recover quickly you'll need to take it easy, at least for a few days."

"I don't want them missing work and classes to look after me though."

Abby nodded in agreement. "I have an alternative, I was thinking you could stay with me. Being a workaholic has left me with plenty of overdue time off built up and who better to take care of you than a doctor?"

"But then you'd be missing work too."

"Yes but as I said It's been a very long time since I last took a break from work and I'd like the opportunity to get to know you better."

"I'd like that too but are you really sure?"

"Absolutely." Abby smiled kindly at Lexa not wanting her to think it was in any way a problem for her. "I haven't told the others about this plan yet because I wanted to run it past you first."

"Thank you Abby, I really wouldn't like them to mess up their routines to look after me."

Abby nodded in understanding. "They were planning to skip their classes today to come see you but I told them not to because you wouldn't want that."

"You're right I wouldn't, they missed enough having to leave early yesterday."

 

* * *

 

Miller, Bryan, Monty, Harper, Jasper and Maya all came by to visit Lexa that afternoon. Soon after Clarke, Raven and Octavia came by, Lexa and Abby told them about their plan for Lexa to stay with Abby for a few days, at first they were reluctant to agree, arguing that they were capable of taking care of her properly but once Lexa explained that she didn't want them missing their classes and that she was looking forward to spending time with Abby they all agreed. Now Abby was helping Lexa gather her belongings, her discharge papers had been taken care of and it was time for them to go to Abby's house.

"Do I even want to know what's in this?" Abby asked holding up the flash Jasper and Monty had brought with them for Lexa.

Lexa shrugged, even she wasn't sure what it was. "Probably not."

"Alright well just don't drink it until you're off all you meds or I'll have to confiscate it."

"I'm a little wary of drinking it at all."

Abby chuckled. "Ready to go?"

Lexa glanced around the room making sure nothing was left behind. "Yeah, let's go."

They met Octavia, Raven and Clarke in the parking lot, they had already said their goodbyes earlier before Abby had shooed them away telling them that the doctors needed to do one last check before they signed off on discharging Lexa, since Abby had said that Lexa was family to her it would be unethical for her to act as Lexa's doctor so she allowed another doctor to take charge of Lexa's case, although she did double check Lexa's injuries and her chart to make sure nothing was missed but only she and Lexa knew that. While they were waiting Abby and Clarke ran an errand together while Octavia and Raven waited in the canteen for them to return. When they came back Abby told them she would go get Lexa and meet them outside. Lexa was glad to see them again before they left, they didn't hang around for too long knowing that Lexa and Abby needed to get back to the house and get Lexa settled so she could rest again.

"I went by your apartment and got everything you'll need from Clarke." Abby told Lexa as they drove out of the parking lot.

"That's great, thanks Abby."

"I really like the set up you have there, Clarke showed me your room and her art room, that easel you got for her is beautiful, I'd say that must have been fairly expensive."

"It was worth every cent just to make her happy."

"She showed me your 'woods in a room' setup, it's very soothing."

"It's great, isn't it? Best present I've ever gotten." Lexa responded with a big smile showing.

Abby grinned, remembering that Clarke had been just as happy when she had showed Abby the easel. "You two are like two peas in a pod." 

 

* * *

 

Lexa had fallen asleep almost immediately after settling into Clarke's childhood room, she only awoke when Abby jostled her to tell her it was time for dinner. After dinner Lexa wasn't quite as tired as she had been that afternoon, Abby set up her laptop on the coffee table in front of the couch, Bellamy had sent her a text asking her to set it up so that he, Echo, Roan and Luna could talk to her and Lexa via skype. The four of them had become close since first meeting at Gustus and Indra's house on New Years Eve, they often went on double dates, had game nights and spent most of their free time in each others apartments. Lexa was glad they had gotten so close. She had spoken to them all individually over the phone while she was in hospital but seeing her on the laptop screen reassured them that she really was okay, it helped that the poor video quality made it difficult to clearly see most of her injuries.

After talking to them for a long while Abby suggested that it may be time for Lexa to sleep, she could tell Lexa's energy was depleting again and she thought it would be best for her to be in bed rather than falling asleep on the couch, it was uncomfortable sleeping there without any injuries, she could only imagine how bad it would be sleeping there with them added to the equation.

 

* * *

 

_The next morning._

Lexa woke up to the sound of Abby yelling, she was worried something might be happening and Abby might need help until she heard what she was yelling about.

"I do not want that boy anywhere near her, he doesn't get to attack my family and just go on with his life like nothing happened." Lexa had never heard Abby yell before, she wasn't even sure the woman could get angry until now.

"I know Abby I'm going to handle this, we won't let him get away with this." Lexa heard Marcus reply in a much calmer tone than Abby's. "One of the boys, I think his name is John Murphy, came forward to admit his part in it. He agreed to tell us all exactly what happened and who was involved. The only reason there has to be a disciplinary hearing is because he was cunning enough to attack her in a place where there were no camera's or witnesses that aren't linked to Lexa like Monty and his friends are but with this boy as a witness who was present during the attack they will have no choice but to expel Finn from the university."

"And what does he want in exchange for being a witness?" Abby was no longer yelling but there was still anger clear in her voice.

"He's willing to accept any punishment but he's hoping that being a witness will convince the board not to expel him too."

"I'm not sure how I should feel about that."

"I know, I wasn't sure either but if it's the only way to get rid of Finn for good then I think it's for the best."

A long silence followed, Lexa wasn't sure if they had stopped speaking or if they had just moved further away in the house preventing her from hearing any more of the conversation until she heard Abby speak again. "We really need to speak to Lexa about all of this."

"I should get her side of the story in writing, it might help at the hearing."

"Okay but don't pressure her into telling you, she might not be willing to relive what happened and we should respect that."

Lexa smiled hearing Abby being so protective of her. She knew she would tell Marcus everything he wanted to know but she was glad that Abby made it clear that it was her choice.

 

* * *

 

The next few days were spent mostly sitting on the couch talking to Abby and watching TV with her, occasionally taking a break to rest. Lexa had to set a ban on texting her during school or work hours for her friends and cousins because they had been texting so often Lexa knew they were distracted from their work and she didn't want that. Once they were finished for the day Lexa would receive numerous texts and calls, the majority of them being from Clarke. She tried her best to quell their worries by distracting them whenever they focused a little too much on how she was doing.

 

* * *

 

_Thursday morning._

"Hey guys." Lexa greeted from her spot on the couch as she tried to push herself up with some difficulty.

"Don't even think of trying to get up to greet us." Alie warned.

"I'm not incapable of moving." Lexa protested.

"But you're supposed to take it easy, doctors orders, right Abby?" Thelonius asked.

"That's right, let them come to you."

Lexa huffed. "Fine."

"Aw cheer up, we brought you chocolate." Alie said revealing the box of chocolates she had hidden behind her back.

Lexa groaned. "I'm going to have to workout so much once I've recovered."

"Well we can take them back if you want?" Thelonious asked.

"I didn't say that I didn't want them." Lexa said quickly as she reached out to take them.

The three adults laughed at her antics causing her to blush.

 

* * *

 

"Since Thelonious and Alie are here I was thinking about heading into the hospital for a while and you could all have some time alone together, I'll be back in time for dinner though, is that okay with you?"

"Yeah that's fine, have a good day at work."

"If you need anything at all just call me, okay?"

"I will."

"Alright then, have fun and remember not to overexert yourself, if you need something or if you're going anywhere let Thelonious or Alie help you and if you're outside wear a coat, it's a little chilly out today."

Lexa smiled fondly at Abby's motherly checklist. She was so used to the woman being fun and witty that she considered her a friend but she sometimes forgot she was a mother too.

Thelonious and Alie walked out to the car with Abby so she could give them instructions about what Lexa could and couldn't do without Lexa protesting. 

 

* * *

 

_Later that day._

Thelonious and Alie had taken Lexa out on a driving tour so she could show them all her favourite places in Arkadia. They had gone by the college, gone for a short walk in the park she would go to occasionally for lunch with one of her friends, they drove by the gym Lincoln worked at but didn't go in knowing he was likely with a client. As their final stop Lexa decided to show them her and Clarke's apartment, delighted to have the opportunity to show them her home.

"This was Clarke's bedroom but we changed it into a little art studio." Lexa said as she walked into the room.

"She's really talented, these are exquisite." Thelonious commented as he looked at the completed paintings Clarke had placed against the wall.

Lexa was about to respond when they heard voices and the apartment door closing.

"I'll make us something in a few minutes I just want to call Lexa first."

Lexa smiled recognizing the voice as Clarke's, she put her finger up to her mouth telling Thelonious and Alie not to say anything as she moved as silently as she could towards the kitchen.

"Put her on loudspeaker so we can talk to her too." She heard Octavia say.

"My ears are burning." Lexa stated from the doorway to the kitchen surprising the three girls.

Clarke gasped. "Lex...." She practically ran the few steps to Lexa and pulled her into a careful hug, burying her face in the crook of Lexa's neck.

Lexa smiled and melted into the embrace. "Hey Clarke, I've missed you."

"I missed you too." Clarke pulled back from Lexa but cradled her face in her hands.

"You look good in my jacket Clarke."

Clarke looked down at her outfit, blushing when she realized Lexa had just caught her wearing her favourite leather jacket.

"She's been wearing it pretty much all day everyday, we had to force her to take it off before going to bed." Raven revealed.

Clarke avoided looking at Lexa. "Sorry, I just wanted to feel close to you." She made a move to take it off but Lexa halted her.

"You don't have to take it off, I like seeing you wear it."

"Really?" Clarke finally looked at Lexa to find her looking at her with a soft smile.

"Yeah."

"Okay." Clarke smiled shyly at her. "So what are you doing here?"

A throat cleared behind them and Clarke looked to see Thelonious and Alie standing there.

"We were driving around Arkadia and Lexa said we could come see your apartment." Thelonious explained.

"Hi it's so good to see you both again." She gave them both a quick hug before returning to Lexa's side, wrapping her arm loosely around her waist. "Come sit down, let me get you guys some coffee." Clarke directed them towards the couch.

As she tried to go back to the kitchen Raven stopped her. "You go sit too Griff, me and O can make the coffee."

"Thank you." Clarke gave Raven a quick hug and shot a grateful look at Octavia.

"Go spend some time with your girl."

Clarke moved to the armchair where Lexa was sitting and sat on the arm of the chair. "Hi." She smiled softly at Lexa, feeling like she could finally breathe again now that she was within reaching distance of her again.

"Hi." Lexa smiled back at her and took Clarke's hand in her own.

"How are you feeling?" Clarke's eyes quickly darted around Lexa's body checking the injuries that were visible like the bruising on her hands which she was glad to see weren't as dark and painful looking as they had been only a few days before.

"I'm good. How are you? Are you sleeping alright?" Lexa had noticed the lines below Clarke's eyes, a clear sign that she wasn't getting enough sleep.

"I'm fine. I've been sleeping over in O and Rae's place." She decided not to mention that she wasn't sleeping quite as easily as she did when she's with Lexa but she thought it was for the best, Lexa didn't need to be under any more stress than she already was.

Raven came out of the kitchen to ask Thelonious and Alie how they liked their coffee which reminded Clarke and Lexa that they weren't alone.

"So you guys toured Arkadia? Do you like it?" Clarke asked them.

"It's great, I especially love this apartment you've both made it so homey." Alie commented with a sweet smile.

"Lexa showed us your work Clarke, you're very talented." Thelonious beamed proudly, he was so glad Clarke had never given up on her art.

"Thanks." Clarke said shyly.

"It's great that you were able to change your bedroom into a studio." Alie commented.

"It is, I had forgotten how nice it is to sleep in a room that's not full of lingering paint fumes."

"Yeah it's probably better for your health."

"Plus I get to cuddle up with this cutie every night." Clarke draped an arm around Lexa's shoulders.

"I miss that." Lexa admitted, forgetting again that the Jaha's were there and they were watching them.

"I miss it too but soon...." Clarke trailed off knowing Lexa understood.

"Soon." Lexa repeated quitely, smiling adoringly at Clarke.

They sat there staring at each other until Octavia and Raven joined them finally making them aware that they had unintentionally been ignoring the Jaha's. They both apologized but the Jaha's weren't upset about it, they were happy just to sit there watching the two who were very obviously in love. After that the conversation flowed easily with the other four chatting to each other whenever Clarke and Lexa found their focus shifting to each other.

 

* * *

 

They stood by the Jaha's car saying their goodbyes, Clarke said goodbye to Alie and Thelonious first so that her last goodbye would be to Lexa. There was barely even a sliver of space between their bodies as they stood facing each other.

"We'll be coming to mom's house straight after college tomorrow." Clarke spoke quietly, it wasn't that she didn't want the others to hear it just felt like such an intimate moment that it called for soft spoken words.

Lexa gently ran her fingers over Clarke's cheek, her gaze following the movement for a minute before locking eyes with Clarke again. "Sleep well Clarke." 

"You too." Clarke didn't hesitate before closing the distance and finally kissing Lexa, she had been dreaming about doing that again all week, when she pulled back a moment later she kept her eyes shut and rested her forehead against Lexa's. "Okay?"

"More than okay." Lexa whispered, echoing her words from the day at the hospital.

Clarke opened her eyes to find Lexa looking at her with pure adoration, her own expression showing the same to Lexa. At some point her hand had come to rest flat on Lexa's chest over her heart without her even noticing she had done it.

Lexa took the hand on her chest in her own and raised it up to her lips to press a gentle kiss to the back of Clarke's hand. "I'll see you tomorrow Clarke."

When they broke apart they both noticed the not so well hidden grins on everyone's faces causing them both to blush slightly.

 

* * *

  

They made it back to the house not long after Abby had gotten home. They had called her on the way back deciding they would get takeout and bring it back to the house so no one would have to cook.

After dinner Thelonious helped Lexa to the couch since she refused to go back to bed not wanting to waste the rest of the time she had with the Jaha's whilst Alie helped Abby clean up.

"I really don't know how anyone could hurt that girl." Alie commented.

"There's always been something off about Finn, I knew it back when Clarke was dating him, he thinks no one matters but him because of his parents being so rich." Abby's hatred for Finn was evident in her voice.

"It's bad enough that he hurt her but all the pain she's had to deal with at such a young age, most people don't have to deal with that much in an entire lifetime, I have clients with smaller issues than what Lexa's had to deal with that feel like their world is crumbling around them but Lexa just pushes through it all, she never fully throws in the towel and I'm so proud of her for that." 

"She is an extraordinary young woman." Abby remained silent for a few moments, a thoughtful look on her face. "I've spent a lot of time talking to Lexa the last few days, I know there's no replacing her parents but from the way she speaks about you and Thelonious I think she sees you both as parental figures in her life."

"I was never able to have kids of my own and I accepted that, I never really thought it was something i needed anyways but getting that call from Indra made me realize that I've come to see Lexa as my own kid. I have never felt fear like that before and then seeing her lying in that hospital bed terrified me." Alie's voice trembled as she spoke.

Abby squeezed Alie's shoulder offering her a small gesture of support. "Trust me I know that fear all too well."

"How do you handle it?"

"Focus on the good as much as possible, you'll always be afraid something will happen but thinking about the good things happening in their lives distracts you from thinking about it the negative things too much."

Alie took a moment to absorb that, the fear she felt for Lexa seemed to creep up again and again over the last few days only disappearing when she was texting Lexa or speaking on the phone to her, she could only imagine how tough it was for Abby having to deal with that fear for multiple people. "Speaking of good things...." Alie decided to change the conversation not wanting to make Abby or herself think about that fear any longer. "Clarke and Lexa kissed again today."

"They did?" Abby asked, hoping she had heard that right.

"Umhmm."

"Finally." Abby breathed out the word.

Alie chuckled. "They're so cute together, I'm so glad they found each other."

"Me too but it took them long enough to get to this point."

"At least they're figuring it out now though."

Abby hummed her agreement.

 

* * *

 

After Thelonious and Alie left Abby and Lexa sat down to watch TV together.

"Were you happy to see the girls today?" Abby asked after a while.

Lexa hummed. "I really missed them. It's weird going from seeing them everyday to not at all."

"I'm sure it's the same for them."

"I made an important decision today."

"Oh really?" Abby asked curiously.

Lexa wrung her hands nervously, she couldn't just not tell Abby now that she had piqued her interest and she genuinely wanted Abby's opinion. "I want to date your daughter." She nervously blurted out as quickly as she could, she took a deep breath to calm herself before saying it more clearly. "I mean I would like to ask Clarke to go on a date with me, I just wanted to ask if you're okay with me doing that?"

"Well it's about damn time." Abby chuckled at Lexa's surprised expression. "Lexa I knew you and Clarke liked each other before I ever met you, Octavia and Raven told me and then I saw it too in the way she smiled every time you were mentioned. Clarke's not great at hiding her feelings and neither are you."

"So you're okay with us possibly dating?"

"I couldn't imagine anyone that would be better for my daughter than you Lexa." Abby's smile was kind and earnest. "You would've had Jake's approval too."

"You think so?"

"Definitely, he would be rooting for you two just as much as I am. Jake always said that all he wanted was for Clarke to find someone who would look at her like she was the most precious person on this earth and I know you don't just look at her like that but you really believe it too. You are a parents dream Lexa and I'm just so glad that it's my daughter you want to be with."

Lexa blushed and ducked her head to hide her shy smile. "Thank you Abby, it really means a lot to me to have your approval."

"So how are you going to ask her?" Abby asked excitedly.

"I want it to be special, I do have an idea about how to do it but I'll need some help."

"Well I'm happy to help in any way I can."

 

* * *

 

_Friday._

Clarke nestled into Lexa's side refusing to have any distance between them anymore.

Raven looked at Lexa and Clarke trying to figure out how she could hug Lexa while they were in that position. "Wanna share Griff?"

"Nope, mine." Clarke tightened the embrace slightly, determined not to let go of Lexa.

Lexa smiled and kissed Clarke's forehead.

Raven smirked. "Alright then a fist bump will have to suffice Woods."

"I'm happy with a fist bump." She held her fist out for Raven to bump which she did gently because she worried about hurting Lexa.

Lincoln pressed a kiss to the top of Lexa's head, Anya squeezed her shoulder and Octavia engulfed both her and Clarke in an awkward group hug. Abby watched on as they all caught up with Lexa, it was clear how much they had all missed her especially her cousins since they had both been at work when Lexa went by the apartment with the Jaha's.

 

* * *

 

"Anya and Lincoln took over the cooking duties for us." Clarke informed Lexa during dinner.

"Oh really?" Lexa was clearly surprised.

Lincoln took a drink before responding. "We have a newfound respect for how much work you put into keeping our girlfriends full."

"I feed dozens of people everyday but even I struggled to keep up with their never ending hunger." Anya stated, looking at Octavia and Raven with a disbelieving look.

"We were thinking about changing up the cooking schedule so me and Anya could help out more often."

"Not like all the time but a few times a week to give you and Clarke a break from it." Anya added quickly, not wanting to get stuck doing it all the time.

"Seems only fair considering they're our girlfriends and we've just been letting you and Clarke do all the work to keep them happy." Lincoln looked at them both guiltily.

"We didn't mind doing the cooking but it would be good to have a break from it every now and then." Lexa admitted.

"We'll rework the schedule when you're feeling better." Clarke decided.

 

* * *

 

After dinner Clarke helped Lexa back to her room. Lexa didn't mention that she was perfectly capable of getting there on her own, enjoying the feeling of Clarke's arm around her waist.

"You look tired." Lexa commented as she slipped into the bed.

"I am, it's hard sleeping without you next to me."

"Come here." Lexa held her arms out to Clarke.

Clarke kicked off her shoes, snuggled up to Lexa carefully avoiding her injuries and hummed contentedly once she was settled.

"Better?"

"Umhmm, I honestly don't know how I ever slept without you."

"I know what you mean, I'm sleeping in your bed but without you it just feels wrong."

"We'll be back to our own bed soon, mom said you're healing well and faster than expected." Clarke smiled but it soon faded when she remembered what she needed to tell Lexa, she took in a deep breath and collected her thoughts for a minute. "I spoke to Finn's father."

Lexa stayed silent but Clarke could feel how her body tensed at the mention of Finn's name.

"He came by the university and asked to speak to me....I agreed to it, Marcus insisted on being there to supervise."

"I'm glad to hear that, I wouldn't want you to be alone in a situation like that."

"Mister Collins isn't a bad guy, he's really very nice and so is his wife. I really don't know how Finn turned out to be so cruel with parents like them." Clarke frowned trying to figure it out but shook away the thoughts to finish telling Lexa what she needed to. "He said he wanted to apologize to you but he didn't know if you would be okay with seeing him so he asked me to tell you that he is sincerely sorry for what his son did to you. He said Finn's been getting more and more out of control over the year's and that they blame themselves for not dealing with the issue sooner. They told Finn that he needed to apologize for what he did to you and should work to earn your forgiveness, when he refused and even went as far as to say he stood by his actions they decided it was time to cut him off financially, he said that money had corrupted their son and it was time to fix that. So now that he's been kicked out of college and has been cut off by his family he has no choice but to get a job and learn what it's like to live as an average joe hopefully he'll learn not to be such an asshole."

Lexa stayed silent, absorbing all the information Clarke had just given her. "I'm glad to hear they don't support his actions."

"He also said that if you wanted to press charges or even sue they would understand and would even support your decision."

"I don't think that's necessary, they do sound like decent people, suing would just be a punishment for them and they don't deserve to suffer for their son's bad behaviour. Pressing charges would probably just result in an unnecessary long trial and he'd probably just get a slap on the wrist anyway so I don't see the point in going through all that."

"I figured you wouldn't want to do either of them, you're too good to even consider revenge." Clarke finally felt Lexa relax for the first time since they had started this conversation.

"Why waste my time on plotting revenge when I could be enjoying my time with you instead?"

Clarke pressed a feather-light kiss to Lexa's jaw. "You're so sweet."

 

* * *

 

Clarke soon dozed off, sleep came much easier when she was with Lexa. Octavia, Lincoln, Raven and Anya had all taken turns checking on them but didn't stay too long not wanting to wake Clarke, they all knew the stress of the last few days had taken it's toll on her. 

As the night wore on Abby came into the room to give Lexa her painkillers. She smiled seeing her little girl resting so peacefully in Lexa's arms but she worried that the position they were in may be causing Lexa some pain. "Should I wake her or is it okay?"

"Nah it's okay, she needs a good nights sleep."

"Did you give her the sketchbook?"

"Not yet, I wanted to let her rest first, she was really tired."

Abby nodded in understanding. "I was thinking since it's not a school night everyone could stay the night if they want, are you okay with that?"

Lexa let a huge grin show hearing that everyone could stay and she wouldn't have to sleep without Clarke that night. "That sounds great." 

Abby sat on the bed beside Lexa and handed her one of her painkillers. 

Lexa put the pill in her mouth and took the glass of water Abby handed her to wash it down. 

"Are you okay for everything now?"

"Yeah thank you."

"Alright I'll let you get some sleep, I'll tell the others you're going to sleep now so they won't come in and wake you up."

"Thanks, goodnight Abby."

"Goodnight Lexa." Abby said softly before leaving the room.

Lexa shifted down a little in the bed to get more comfortable, being careful not to wake Clarke. Once she was settled comfortably she pressed a kiss to Clarke's forehead. "Goodnight Clarke, sweet dreams."

Clarke let out a content sigh in her sleep, Lexa smiled before shutting her eyes and getting a much needed good night's sleep.

 

* * *

 

Lexa woke up the next morning to an empty bed but thankfully that wasn't the case for long.

"Good morning." Clarke greeted cheerfully as she entered the room with a tray.

"Mornin'." Lexa responded, sitting up in bed and stretching her arms.

"Breakfast in bed." Clarke announced, placing the tray on Lexa's lap.

Lexa smiled seeing what Clarke had brought her. "You made me pancakes."

Clarke shrugged before sitting back down on the bed next to Lexa. "It's been a while since I've cooked them for you, thought you might like some."

"Thanks Clarke." Lexa kissed Clarke's cheek. "Is everyone awake?"

"Yeah, mom's making breakfast for them."

"I'm the only one that gets your pancakes?"

"Yup. Surprisingly Rae and O didn't try to steal any, it's a testament to how important you are to them, they're willing to give up pancakes for you."

Lexa finished a bite of her pancakes before responding. "Damn, that is true friendship."

Clarke grinned and took her own coffee mug off of the tray. "Wanna hear something weird?"

"Sure."

"Your cousin, the professional chef, was taking notes on how I made the pancakes." Clarke revealed proudly.

"Of course she was, they're amazing which isn't surprising considering the woman that made them is also amazing." Lexa smiled fondly at her before taking another bite of her pancakes.

Clarke leaned over and pressed a kiss to Lexa's cheek before resting her head on Lexa's shoulder.

 

* * *

 

"Time for your meds." Abby announced coming into the room with a glass of water and Lexa's pills.

Lexa took the glass and the meds from Abby but set them down on the bedside table. "I'll take them in a little while, there's something I want to do first and I don't want my mind to be all foggy."

Abby gave Lexa a knowing look and Lexa gave a small nod confirming that Abby did know what she was talking about.

Clarke frowned looking between the two, confused about what Lexa would have to do and what her mother knew about it.

"I'll give you some privacy." Abby exited the room with a wide grin plastered on her face. 

Lexa sucked in a nervous deep breath, she took Clarke's hand in her own to get her attention. "I have something for you."

Clarke tilted her head slightly in confusion. "Okay...?"

Lexa reached into the beside locker to pull out a sketchbook. "You can look at it now but not in here, I want you to look at it on your own, alright?" 

Clarke frowned even more confused now but nodded.

"Whatever your answer is it won't change anything between us, I promise. We'll always have a unique bond that I treasure whether it's as friends or....something else." Lexa said mysteriously, not wanting to give away much but needing Clarke to understand that she shouldn't feel pressured to say yes to her.

 

* * *

 

"What you got there Griff?"

"I don't know, Lexa said I have to look at it on my own though so I'm going out back."

Abby approached her daughter and gave her shoulder a comforting squeeze. "Don't look so worried honey, it's nothing bad. Actually I think you're going to be very happy about it."

Clarke looked at her mother suspiciously but decided not to question her, too curious to look at the sketchbook, she simply nodded and slipped out onto the patio.

"What are you and Lex hiding from us Mama G?"

"You'll find out soon enough, just be patient." Abby responded, watching Clarke through the kitchen window with a soft smile on her face.

 

* * *

 

Clarke came back into the house with the goofiest looking grin on her face, hugging the sketchbook to her chest she leaned back against the door frame while everyone stared at her.

"Well?" Anya was the first to ask.

"Hmm?" Clarke finally broke out of her daze.

"What's with the book?"

Clarke put it down on the table in front of Raven and Anya.

Lincoln, Octavia and Abby moved to stand behind them to see the book as Raven flipped through the pages.

On every page there was a cheesy pick up line written at the top of the page with a sketch related to the line beneath it and Lexa had filled every page, it was clear she had worked hard to find the perfect lines and had really tried her best to make the accompanying artwork decipherable.

They flipped through some of the pages, stopping on random ones. The first one they stopped on had 'If I were a cat I'd spend all 9 lives with you.' written up the top of the page, underneath it there was a terribly drawn cat stood beside a stick figure with blonde hair which they all quickly realized was supposed to be Clarke. The next one they flipped to said 'you're kinda, sorta, basically, pretty much always on my mind.' below it was a brunette stick figure with a thought bubble containing Clarke's stick figure, a little heart on one side of her and a smiley face on the other. Raven couldn't help but laugh loudly at how bad the next one was, it read 'your eyes are blue like the ocean and baby, I'm lost at sea.' below it the Lexa stick figure was in a crudely drawn boat, the ocean a singular blue line. The next one brought a smile to all their faces 'you're like a dictionary, you add meaning to my life!' it said, below it Lexa had drawn an open book, on one of the pages it read 'Clarke: The most wonderful person to have ever existed.'. Next up was a drawing of the sun with love hearts for eyes and a big smile, above it 'you are so beautiful that you give the sun a reason to shine.' was written. The next one was one that was somewhat specific to their past 'you may fall from the sky, you may fall from a tree, but the best way to fall... is in love with me.' there was a tree trunk drawn with one branch growing out of it, below it stood the brunette stick figure holding the blonde stick figure as though she had saved her from falling out of the tree. 

They finally reached the very last page where Lexa had written 'One of the lines I was going to use was 'you’re my favorite weakness' but I don't think that's true because while I cannot stop myself from falling for you (even if I could I wouldn't want to) you gave me back my life and made it even better than I could have ever imagined it being, you give me a reason to smile from the beginning to the end of each day, you have helped me see the beauty in this world again, so I think you, Clarke Princess Griffin, are my greatest strength and I would never forgive myself if I missed my chance to be with you. So my beautiful, wonderful Clarke would you like to go on a date with me?'

"This is so cheesy." Anya said, closing the sketchbook, although if anyone were to look at her they would easily see the smile on her face.

"So very Lexa." Lincoln commented with a proud smile on his face.

"It's adorable." Octavia cooed.

"And very thoughtful." Abby added.

Clarke only remembered then that her mother had known about the book before she did. "What was your involvement in this mom?"

"All I did was get the sketchbook, everything else was all done by Lexa, she wanted to do something special for you."

Clarke heart fluttered hearing that Lexa wanted to make the simple act of asking her to go on a date special for her.

"What the hell are you waiting for Griff?" At Clarke's bewildered expression Raven clarified. "Go kiss your girl."

Clarke beamed and ran out of the kitchen heading towards her old room. Just before she burst into the room she heard her mother shout "Be gentle, she's still injured."

Lexa's gaze focused on Clarke as soon as the door opened. "Hi." She wrung her hands nervously, worried about Clarke's reaction.

Clarke moved to the bed and straddled Lexa making sure not to put too much of her weight on her. "Yes!" She captured Lexa's lips in a short, sweet kiss. "Yes!" She kissed her again "Yes!" And again "Yes!" Again. "Yes!" She finally pulled back, a huge grin on her face.

Lexa had a grin just as big showing. "I'm guessing that's a yes to the date?"

Clarke chuckled. "That is a definite yes to the date."

"Did you like the book?"

"It's so dorky." Lexa pouted but Clarke was quick to kiss away the pout. "And so freaking adorable."

Clarke noticed that Lexa's pills were still on the bedside table and frowned. "You haven't taken your meds yet?"

"I was worried that if I did I might forget this moment and this is something I want to remember for the rest of my life."

"Such a romantic dork." Clarke kissed Lexa again before pulling back to reveal a huge grin. "I'm a very lucky girl to have a date with someone so sweet and thoughtful."

 

* * *

 

_A little while later._

"Congratulations Lex, I'm so glad you and Clarke are giving it a real shot." Lincoln leaned down over the bed to hug his cousin.

Anya sat down on the bed next to Lexa. "I'm proud of you for finally asking her out, even if you did do it in the dorkiest way possible." 

"Say what you want, Clarke liked it and that's all that matters." Nothing anyone said could get rid of the smile on her face.

Anya smiled, glad to see her cousin so happy. "We have to head back to the apartment and get ready for work now but we'll be coming back here later, Abby said we could stay again tonight."

"You know you don't have to turn your lives upside down just to keep me company."

"We know but we miss you so we want to be here, right Anya?"

Anya hummed her agreement. "Plus Clarke doesn't look like a sad puppy when she's around you."

 

* * *

 

"Do you feel up for a walk? I was thinking we could go back to the woods." Clarke asked hopefully.

Lexa looked to Abby for permission.

"That should be okay as long as you promise you won't climb any trees this time." Abby said in her most motherly tone.

"I promise to keep my feet firmly on the ground."

"And if you break that promise Clarkey will cancel your date, right?"

Clarke looked at Octavia incredulously before directing her response at Lexa. "Well no I won't agree to that but we won't be able go on a date if you're back in hospital because you fell out of a tree."

Lexa smiled, glad that Clarke wasn't willing to use their date as a bargaining chip even if it was just a joke. "I just want to be wherever you are so if you stay on the ground then that's where I'll be too."

Clarke kissed Lexa soundly on the lips, not caring that her mother and two of her best friends were watching.

"You two are even more lovey-dovey than before." Raven said, her disbelief that it was even possible evident in her voice.

 

* * *

 

Just like the last time they had been to the woods Abby, Octavia and Raven were a little ahead of Clarke and Lexa this time though it wasn't just so that they could be alone, although that was a factor, Clarke was adamant that they would walk slowly determined not to let Lexa get hurt in any way. They were walking mostly in silence, their hands linked and swinging slightly between them, without the pressure of trying to hide their feelings they both felt much more relaxed, a huge difference from the tension that had been plaguing them only a few days before that.

"Did you tell my mom you were going to ask me out?"

"Umhmm, I wanted to get her approval before I asked you out, she was very supportive." Lexa responded easily.

Clarke looked at her with a fond look but Lexa missed it, her gaze had been focused on taking in their surroundings. "She's known for a really long time that I like you, she even called you my soulmate at Thanksgiving."

Lexa met Clarke's gaze, a soft smile appearing on her face. "She told me she knew you liked me before she met me."

Clarke blushed at that. "I guess I was pretty obvious."

Lexa squeezed Clarke's hand and allowed a beat of silence to pass between them before speaking again. "Can I ask you something?"

"Sure."

"Why don't you like Harper?"

Clarke stopped walking, causing Lexa to stop too, she was completely surprised and a little confused by Lexa's question. "I do like Harper, she helped save you from Finn and those other assholes."

"Yeah but I mean before that happened, you didn't seem to like her being near me."

"That was only because she kept trying to hit on you."

"So....you were jealous?" Lexa asked a little hopefully.

"Jealous?" Clarke blushed slightly again. "Of course not, I just didn't think it was right for her to keep hitting on you when you couldn't tell her if you were or weren't interested in her."

Lexa thought about Clarke's answer and hummed, she believed it was a partial truth but there was more to it than that. "Pity."

"What? Why is it a pity?"

Lexa shrugged, struggling to hide a smirk. "The idea of you being jealous is kind of hot."

"Really?"

"Doesn't really matter since you weren't jealous."

"I was jealous, so jealous I wanted to push her away every time she was near you." Clarke confessed hurriedly.

Lexa grinned delighted to hear Clarke say that. "Oh really?"

"Absolutely." Clarke answered very seriously.

"You, Clarke Griffin, are one of a kind." Lexa pulled Clarke closer with her hands on her hips and rested her forehead against Clarke's. "Whenever I look at you or just even think of you, everyone else disappears."

 

* * *

 

_Sunday Evening._

"All I'm saying is that once she's up and running I'll have some real competition again, you're too gentlemanly to compete against." Octavia explained to Lincoln, he wasn't too happy when Octavia had mentioned while she was saying goodbye that she needed Lexa back to her best as soon as possible so she could get a real workout.

"How do you know I'm not just losing for real?" Lincoln asked.

"Because when Lexa's involved you actually take it seriously."

"Well you should blame Lexa for me letting you win, she's the one that's always telling me to be a gentleman and a gentleman let's his girlfriend win."

"Yeah but I never taught you to lose a race just so you could stare at your girlfriends ass while she's running."

"That's why you let me win?" Octavia asked, surprised by this new information. "Aw baby that's so sweet." She wrapped her arms around Lincoln's neck and pulled him closer to kiss him.

"Those two really are perfect together." Raven shook her head before moving over to Lexa to pull her into a hug. "Don't take too long to heal Woods." Raven ordered once she had moved back a bit.

"I've got a date with a beautiful woman, I'm pretty sure that will inspire me to heal in a record breaking amount of time." Lexa smiled widely, her focus turning to Clarke.

Clarke moved forward, occupying the space where Raven had just stood and captured Lexa's lips in a chaste kiss. "I'll wait however long it takes, the most important thing is that you recover."

"Well it shouldn't be too much longer before your next reunion, you really are healing very quickly, a few more days and I think you'll be ready to go home." Abby informed them.

"Enough time to plan our date and this way I'll be able to make it a complete surprise." Lexa told Clarke with a sweet smile.

 

* * *

 

It was another three days before Abby let Lexa go back to her apartment and start going to classes again. She had reluctantly agreed when Marcus said he would keep an eye on her in college and would send her home if she was overworking herself, he pointed out that she had Clarke, her friends and her cousins watching out for her at the apartment too so there was no chance she would get away with overexerting herself. She struggled to settle back into her routine the first day and the next day she felt worn out but thankfully it was Friday so she would have the weekend to relax and recuperate. By the following Tuesday she was feeling much better, she was able to keep up in her classes, she slept much better now that she could hold Clarke at night again and she even felt well enough to cook occasionally although she was very much enjoying the new schedule they had for cooking now that Anya and Lincoln were helping.

Clarke had told Lexa that their date could wait until she was fully healed and Lexa had initially agreed because of how worn out she was the first few days but by the next Wednesday she had changed her mind and asked Clarke if she would like to go on their date Friday after college. After questioning Lexa about how sure she was that she would be feeling alright by then Clarke had agreed, delighted that she would finally get her date with Lexa.

After classes on Thursday Clarke had taken a few of her outfits from their room and brought them over to Octavia and Raven's apartment so that on Friday she could get ready for their date in the other apartment while Lexa got ready in their own apartment. They both wanted to do this date properly right down to ensuring that their outfits would be a surprise.

 

* * *

 

_Friday afternoon._

"Uh guys Lexa's sort of freaking out about what to wear and I don't think I'm much help to her." Lincoln told Octavia and Raven, looking a little distressed.

"I've got Woods, you stay here and help Griff." Raven said to Octavia. "And you should probably stay here too, you look like you're about to pass out." She told Lincoln.

Raven made her way over to the other apartment, not bothering to knock on the apartment door or the bedroom door before going in. "What's going on Woods?"

"Nothing I have is good enough." Lexa huffed as she threw another shirt onto a pile of clothes on her bed. "Why didn't I buy a new outfit for tonight?"

"Okay you need to sit down, Clarke won't be happy if you exhaust yourself looking for clothes and then have to cancel the date." Raven attempted to move Lexa away from the drawers she was rooting through.

Lexa managed to maneuver around Raven. "I don't have time to sit around doing nothing Raven."

Raven spun her around and carefully nudged her towards the bed. "I know, that's why I'm going to help, I'll find something for you, okay?"

Lexa reluctantly sat on the bed, feeling the relief immediately, she definitely needed a few minutes to rest her legs. "Thank you Raven."

A tense silence engulfed them as Raven started rooting through Lexa's clothes, she kept an eye on Lexa as she did, she could tell there was something bothering her friend but decided it was best not to put any pressure on Lexa to answer any questions right now. They stayed like that for another few minutes before Lexa finally let out a sigh. "What if it all goes wrong and she can't even look at me anymore? I'll have to move out and I'll lose all of you."

"Chill commander, if that happens O will move in with Griff and you can move in with me but that's not going to happen because this date is going to be amazing."

"What if it's not though?"

Raven stopped what she was doing and turned towards Lexa, a serious expression on her face. "Clarke is crazy about you. You could take her to Walmart and she'd still think it was the best date ever just because she was with you." Raven saw her relax a little and went back to trying to find an outfit for her. "Seriously you've got this Woods, there is no way this date will be anything less than amazing."

"Thanks Raven."

"It's my duty to help, remember? I'm your love guru."

Lexa chuckled the last of her anxiety finally dissipating. "Why do I get called dorky when you're clearly the dorkiest of us all?"

"I hide it better than you do." Raven draped a few different items of clothing over Lexa's lap. "Now put these on while I go raid your fridge as a reward for all my hard work."

Lexa rolled her eyes but there was no hiding her small smile, she really was grateful Raven was there for her.

 

* * *

  

"Wow." Lexa breathed out the word so quietly it was almost silent. "You look stunning Clarke."

Clarke was wearing a beautiful white dress that ended just below the knees and left her shoulders exposed, it hugged her curves so perfectly Lexa thought it must have been made specifically for her. Octavia had helped her curl her hair and she had only put on a small amount of makeup.

Clarke blushed slightly at the compliment before she let herself appreciate Lexa's appearance. Lexa was wearing simple black pants, a dark green shirt with the top few buttons left open and a casual black blazer over it. She moved toward her and ran her hands down the lapels of Lexa's blazer, her hair was done in her signature braids. "You are so beautiful."

They both stood staring at each other completely mesmerized with huge grins on their faces until a camera flash distracted them. "Are you taking pictures of us?" Clarke asked their friends accusingly.

"She is." Octavia said, gesturing towards Raven. "I'm recording a video so Mama G can see this too."

"Send it to me so I can send it to mom, dad and the Jaha's too." Lincoln told Octavia.

"You're all so embarrassing." Clarke hid her face in the crook of Lexa's neck.

Lexa just laughed at her friends antics and wrapped her arms around Clarke's waist. "Wanna go now?"

"Yes please." Clarke muttered still hiding her face.

Before they could get to the door Raven moved in front of it, standing there with her hands on her hips. "I understand you're young and you have urges, all I ask is that if you feel the need to get frisky just wait until the car has come to a complete stop first."

"Oh my god." Clarke muttered, hurriedly moving around Raven to get out of the apartment.

"Have her home by midnight Commander." Octavia called out to her down the corridor.

Lexa turned to walk backwards as she mock saluted. "Yes ma'am." She turned back around following Clarke to the stairwell.

Clarke shook her head and pulled Lexa along at a faster pace than before. "Don't encourage them."

 

* * *

 

"Anya what are you doing?" Lexa asked, her eyes wide when her cousin showed up at their table. 

Anya placed their appetizers down in front of them. "Everyone else got to see you two before you left, I didn't want to miss out so I asked a few of the waiters to keep an eye out and let me know when you two got here."

Lexa shook her head disbelievingly. "I'm so sorry Clarke."

Clarke chuckled. "This isn't even half as embarrassing as Linc, O and Rae's little photo shoot back at the apartment." She leaned closer to Lexa to speak quietly so that other people around them wouldn't hear her. "Plus everyone seems to think we're really important since the chef personally brought our meals out."

Lexa looked around the restaurant to find that there were a few patrons watching them curiously, some of them speaking to each other in hushed tones as they did.

 

* * *

 

"That was delicious." Clarke hummed happily after finishing her appetizer. "I know Anya's a top notch chef but why doesn't she work in one of the grounders diners? I would've thought your uncle would like to have a chef as good as her working for him instead of a competitor."

"She did back when she was still learning, it's where she got her start. She was always honest with my uncle about wanting to work in a place like this and he always encouraged her to do what made her happy. Then there was an incident that sort of forced her to leave grounders, during a particularly busy shift Anya ended up having to cook and serve the food and this one guy got a little handsy after she brought them their food, he grabbed her ass and she broke his nose. Luckily he didn't press charges or sue my uncle, we figure it's because he didn't want to admit that a girl broke his nose. After that Anya decided she should find somewhere else to work, I think she was worried that Gus might lose his business if she lost her temper again."

"That's smart, I hope that guy learned his lesson."

"Well he never showed up at the diner again so I imagine the experience made him think twice about ever hassling a woman again." Lexa said with a proud smile, she really believed that Anya did the right thing even if it could have jeopardized her uncle's business, she knew that if Gus had been there to witness that incident then the man would have been taken out of the diner on a stretcher, Gus would gladly give up his business to protect his family.

 

* * *

 

"So when exactly did you start liking me?" Clarke asked while they were waiting for their main course.

"You'll call me a dork again if I tell you the truth."

"I won't, I promise."

"From the moment I first met you." Lexa admitted quietly.

When Lexa finally built up the courage to look up she saw that Clarke was grinning at her. "Me too."

"Really?"

Clarke reached across the table to hold Lexa's hand. "Yeah, you took my breath away and I was mortified that I was just wearing old sweats while you looked like a freaking goddess."

"You looked beautiful, you always do." Lexa raised their joined hands up to her lips to press a gentle kiss to Clarke's hand.

 

* * *

 

They had just finished their main course when a bald man dressed in a very expensive looking suit approached their table.

"Miss Woods, I'm so pleased you're here, your cousin told me you would be dining here tonight."

"It's nice to see you again Titus." Lexa greeted politely.

"You'll be happy to hear there have been glowing reports from the customers about our latest art requisition. We've even had a few requests to purchase it but I had to inform them that my heart is set on keeping it."

Lexa beamed. "That's fantastic."

"Indeed." Titus turned towards a bewildered looking Clarke. "I believe this is the artist?"

"Yes, Titus meet Clarke Griffin."

"Miss Griffin it is a true pleasure to meet you, I am a big fan of your work."

"Thank you, it's nice to meet you too but I'm a bit confused, how do you know my work?"

"You should look over there Clarke." Lexa said nervously as she pointed to a place behind Clarke.

Clarke turned in her chair and looked over in the direction Lexa had pointed to, she gasped when she saw one of her own paintings hanging on a wall of the restaurant. It was an image of a small cafe Clarke had seen as a teenager when they had gone on a family vacation to Italy, outside of it sat two separate groups of people enjoying each others company, completely oblivious to the teenager memorizing the scene to capture later on. "How did you get that?"

"Titus mentioned to Anya that he was looking to add to his art collection and she told me, we ended up bringing Titus to your mom's house to show him some of your work and he fell in love with that painting. We left the financial aspect of it to your mom because me and Anya weren't comfortable putting a price on your work."

"Speaking of which." Titus reached into the pocket of his suit jacket and pulled out a white envelope. "One thousand five hundred dollars as agreed."

"Whoa that's a lot of money." Clarke said as she peeked inside the envelope.

"Indeed, your painting is now among some of the most expensive pieces of art I own but it is worth it." Titus smiled proudly at the painting. "Well I will leave you ladies to enjoy your meal. Miss Griffin it was a pleasure meeting you and Miss Woods a pleasure seeing you again."

"You too Titus." Lexa responded with a sweet smile.

The man quickly disappeared leaving them alone.

Lexa became nervous when she noticed Clarke's gaze was focused on the painting, not knowing how she really felt about this. "Is this okay Clarke? If it's not we can just give back the money and get the painting back, I just wanted to do something special fo—"

Clarke stood up while Lexa was speaking and moved around the table to cut her off with a quick but sweet kiss. "This is the most amazing thing anyone has ever done for me." She said quietly.

Lexa blushed and smiled shyly. "I'm glad you're happy."

Clarke sat back down, immediately reaching across the table to hold Lexa's hand again. "I've never imagined my art being displayed in such a public place especially somewhere so fancy."

"From what Titus said you seem to have quite a few admirers, have you ever thought about selling your art before?"

"Yes but I never really believed anyone would buy it if I did."

"And what about now?"

"I think I might give it a try." Clarke looked at her painting once more before turning her attention back to Lexa completely. "Thank you Lexa, I always worry that people won't like my art but seeing that painting hanging up there really makes me feel more confident in my work."

"If you're not ready to sell your art yet I think you should still setup a website to showcase your work, you really are a gifted artist Clarke."

 

* * *

 

"Considering I just got a huge amount of money I think I should pay for dinner." Clarke stated as the waiter left their bill on the table. 

Lexa was quick to take it before Clarke could. "Nope I'm paying. I want every cent of that money to go towards something special for you, something you really care about."

Clarke smirked. "Then I should pay for dinner because my date is really special to me."

Lexa shook her head, a fond smile appearing on her face. "You're sweet but I'm still paying."

"Fine. I'll use it for our next date." Clarke grinned victoriously.

"So there will be a another date?" Lexa asked shyly.

"Of course, I mean if you want that too?" Clarke asked, equally as shy.

Lexa beamed at Clarke's response. "There's nothing I want more."

 

* * *

 

_A short while later._

"I've got one last surprise for you." Lexa revealed as she led Clarke up the stairs of their apartment building, passing their floor.

"Seriously Lex? You've already done so much for me, you really don't have to do anything else."

"It's nothing major and it's already set up."

Once they reached the roof access door Lexa pulled it open and stood back allowing Clarke to go through first.

Clarke gasped when she saw what Lexa had done. Over in the spot they had sat when Clarke first brought Lexa up there was a secondhand patio bench with two solar garden lanterns placed on either side of it.

"I figured this would be more comfortable for you whenever you want to talk to your dad instead of sitting on the hard ground." Lexa explained. looking a little nervous. "I spoke to the landlord and he said it was fine, once I told him I'd pay for it he was happy to let me set it up, he even helped me get it up here."

"Lexa...." Clarke was stunned by how thoughtful she was. "How are you this perfect?"

"Does that mean you like it?" Lexa still looked nervous.

Clarke wrapped her arms around Lexa's neck and crashed their lips together, trying to convey just how special this was to her. She pulled back to wipe away a tear that slipped down her cheek. "I love it."

 

* * *

 

"Hey, are they back yet?" Anya asked when Raven answered her phone.

"Not yet, how long ago did they leave the restaurant?"

"Nearly two hours ago."

"That's a good sign, right?"

"Hopefully. They had all the waiters swooning over how cute they were together."

"Of course they did, they're freaking adorable." Raven heard Anya chuckle through the phone. She could tell Anya was happy for her cousin by her lack of sarcastic or snarky comments and she knew that trusting anyone enough to go out with Lexa was major for her overprotective girlfriend, she also knew that telling Anya how proud she was of her for trusting Clarke would lead to a denial so she decided against doing so. "You finished work yet?"

"Yeah I'm just done I'll be back soon, I just wanted to check in and see if they got back yet."

 

* * *

 

They had sat in complete silence for a while, Clarke curled into Lexa's side and Lexa draped her arm around Clarke as they watched the stars twinkling above them. Lexa had given Clarke her blazer to keep her warm before they had sat down.

At some point they had turned away from the stars and instead watched each other, neither one of them uttered a word but they were completely at ease with the silence, it felt comfortable and familiar to them, it reminded them both of the day they met when they couldn't help but stare at each other both in complete awe of the other. It had felt like years had passed since Lexa first spoke to Clarke, they had both forgotten how nice it was just to be with each other not needing to say anything.

After a while Lexa moved closer to Clarke and with the smallest amount of distance between them she asked "can I kiss you Clarke?"

"You can kiss me any time you want to." Clarke whispered, her breath hitting Lexa's lips as she closed the remaining distance between them.

 

* * *

 

Anya dashed down the corridor towards Raven and Octavia's apartment, glad that they never locked their door allowing her to slip into the apartment just in time.

"You alright?" Lincoln asked worriedly when Anya had burst through the door only to shut it in a overly careful and quiet manner.

Anya nodded. "Lexa and Clarke are coming down from upstairs."

Lincoln frowned wondering why they would be there. "Upstairs?"

"They must have gone up to the roof." Raven said to Octavia, 

Octavia smirked. "Clarke's so going to swoon over that."

"Shh I can hear them talking." Anya said, pressing her ear to the closed door to listen.

Octavia and Raven shared a look before dashing to the door and copying Anya.

"Maybe you shouldn't be eavesdropping on them." Lincoln said from his position on the couch.

"Shh babe we can't hear them if you're talking." Octavia ordered.

Lincoln sighed knowing there was no point in arguing, they wouldn't change their minds.

 

* * *

 

"I really had a great time with you tonight Clarke." Lexa remarked as they stopped outside of their apartment.

"Me too." Clarke pulled Lexa closer to her and captured Lexa's lips in a long, sweet kiss.

Lexa instinctively moved even closer, their bodies molding together causing Clarke to moan into the kiss.

When they broke apart Lexa kept her eyes closed and rested her forehead against Clarke's. "I can't wait to see you again."

Clarke couldn't help but laugh at that. "You do know that we live together, right?"

Lexa's eyes flew open and widened, she pulled back slightly and blushed so much Clarke thought she'd never return to her usual colour. "I uh....I kinda forgot for a second."

Clarke chuckled and shook her head fondly. "You're so cute." She leaned in and gave Lexa a chaste kiss. "It feels so good being able to say things like that without having to worry about you figuring out that I like you."

"You know Raven used to let me ramble about how much I like you, she called herself my love guru."

Clarke rolled her eyes. "Of course she did. I bet she'll take credit for getting us together."

"They all will but they did kind of help us get to this point, even your mom played a part in making this date happen."

"I know, despite how nosy they are we're lucky to have such great supportive people in our lives."

"Without their intervention we wouldn't be able to do this." In one swift movement Lexa pressed her body to Clarke's again as she quickly ducked her head to capture Clarke's lips.

The move surprised Clarke, a small gasp escaping her as their lips met again but it soon turned into a pleased hum as their kiss became more heated. She let herself enjoy it for a few moments before slowing it down until they were just a series of short, sweet kisses. When they eventually pulled apart it took her a minute to calm her racing heart and gather her thoughts. "I want to do this right so since it's our first official date I don't think we should do anything more than just kissing."

"As much as I'd like to do so much more right now you're right, we shouldn't." Lexa agreed.

A throat clearing behind them broke them apart finding their four friends standing in Raven and Octavia's now open apartment.

"Since you both need a few minutes to cool off I suggest Griff comes in here to gush about your date to us and you go in there with Lincoln and Anya so you can gush to them about it too."

"I think I'd prefer to keep doing what we were doing." Lexa confessed her gaze focused on Clarke's lips.

"Ugh you two are already being gross." Anya pretended to gag.

"Come on now, separate." Raven pushed herself between them to force them apart.

"See you soon." Lexa managed to squeeze Clarke's hand as Raven was pulling her away.

"Umhmm I can't wait." Clarke said with a sweet smile.

Anya scrunched up her face. "Again, gross."

 

* * *

 

"Okay spill." Octavia demanded as soon as she closed their apartment door.

"Best. Date. Ever." Clarke responded dreamily.

"I told Woods she had nothing to worry about, now I'm going to have to gloat." Raven said as if doing so would be a chore.

"She was worried?"

"She saw this as the most important day of her life so yeah she freaked out a little bit." 

"Well it's been the best day of my life, she really made it special."

"Okay we need details." Octavia stated.

"We went to the Ark for dinner which was delicious, your girlfriends an amazing cook."

"i know." Raven beamed proudly. "She said all the staff thought you guys looked cute together."

"She waited on our table herself, everyone was looking at us like we we're some sort of big shots."

"What else happened?" Octavia asked trying to turn the conversation back to Clarke and Lexa.

"She had an incredible surprise lined up for me." Clarke smiled at the thought of her art being on display in one of the fanciest restaurants in town. "Anya and Lexa showed the owner of the ark my paintings, he bought one and has it hanging up in the restaurant."

"Seriously?" Raven asked excitedly.

"Yeah, did Anya not tell you?"

"No she didn't say anything about it to me."

"They probably wanted to keep it a secret until you got to see it first." Octavia explained.

"Makes sense." Raven stated before looking at Clarke with a concerned expression. "Are you okay with it? I know you worry about people seeing your work."

"I do usually but from what the owner of the restaurant said people seem to really like it and seeing it hanging there....it was just the best feeling."

"What about the roof?" Octavia asked excitedly.

Clarke frowned wondering how they knew about that. "Did Lexa tell you she was going to bring me up there?"

"No, Anya heard you guys coming downstairs when she was coming up to the apartment, we figured you guys had to have been up on the roof."

"She bought me a bench to make it more comfortable when I want to talk to dad and she bought two solar lights that give just enough light to make it easier to see up there."

"Jeez Woods is just perfect all round, huh?"

"Yeah, she really is." Clarke said with a dreamy expression on her face.

Octavia wrapped her arms around Clarke pulling her into a side hug. "We're happy for you Clarkey, you deserve the very best and clearly that's Lexa."

 

* * *

 

"So how did it go?" Lincoln was the first to question Lexa once they had gotten into the apartment.

"It was amazing,  _she_  is amazing." Lexa answered with a soft smile.

"How did she react to seeing her painting?" Anya asked.

"She loved it, she's thinking about possibly selling more of her art."

"She should, she's really talented." Lincoln remarked.

"Aren't you so glad you have me in your life?" Anya asked smugly.

"Yes." Lexa stated honestly. "I'm so glad I have both of you in my life and thank you for everything you've done to help me, not just with the date but everything you've done for me over the last few years, I wouldn't have gotten to go on this date if it weren't for you two."

"One date with Clarke and she turns all mushy on us." Lexa could tell by the quirk of her lip that Anya was happy to hear what Lexa had said but she would never openly admit it, except maybe to Raven. 

"Hey Lex what's the big deal about the roof?" Lincoln changed the conversation knowing his sister wasn't too fond of speaking about feelings.

"You guys knew we were up there?" Lexa asked, clearly surprised.

"I heard you talking when you were coming downstairs, Octavia and Raven said you must have been on the roof but never explained why." Anya clarified.

"It helps Clarke feel closer to her dad when she looks at the stars so she goes up there to talk to him sometimes. She took me up there a while back and we sat there watching the stars and talking to him, it was really nice but we had to sit on the hard concrete floor so a few days ago I managed to get a secondhand bench and I surprised her with it tonight." Lexa's smile grew into a full grin as she spoke. "She really loved it."

Lincoln smiled at the joy clearing radiating off of Lexa. "I'm really glad to see you this happy Lex, Clarke is so good for you, far better than Costia ever was."

"That's for sure." Lexa agreed immediately. 

"I think if it was anyone other than Clarke I would be worried about how captivated you are by her but it's because it's Clarke that I know your heart is safe." Anya said, surprising both her cousin and brother.

"That's....really sweet, thank you for trusting her Anya." Lexa wrapped her arms around her cousin.

"Don't make a big deal out of it." Anya grumbled, making a half-hearted attempt to escape from the hug.

 

* * *

 

Lexa shot up from her chair as soon as the door opened. "Hi." She greeted with a sweet smile.

"Hey." Clarke responded with a huge smile.

"Ugh let's get out of here before they start making out." Anya rushed towards the door. "Goodnight lovebirds." She called out before leaving the apartment.

"Just for the record I think it's sweet how mushy you two are, not gross." Lincoln clarified as he followed his sister out the door.

Clarke quickly shortened the distance between them with Lexa wrapping her arms around Clarke's waist as soon as she was close enough. Lexa rested her forehead against Clarke's, both of them allowing their eyes to fall shut and enjoying the feeling of the embrace. 

"Wanna go to bed?" Lexa asked quietly after a few moments.

"Umhmm."

 

* * *

 

After getting ready for bed, exchanging a few shy glances as they did, they both finally climbed into bed.

"Are you sure you're okay with us not taking things further tonight?" Clarke asked nervously. 

"Of course Clarke. I want to do this right too, we'll take it slow."

"You know you're like perfect, right?"

"I'm hardly perfect." Lexa protested.

"Name one thing you aren't amazing at."

"Well I can't draw." Lexa grinned proudly like she had just won a debate.

"I don't know about that, I've got a sketchbook full of cute doodles that proves you kind of can."

Lexa chuckled lightly. "That's the nicest way I've ever been told that I lack artistic ability."

Clarke absentmindedly started drawing random patterns on Lexa's forearm with her finger. "Well it's best to be nice when you're trying to woo an amazing woman."

"Woo? Really Clarke?" Lexa asked disbelievingly.

Clarke's hand stilled and she looked at Lexa. "What? It's as good a way as any to describe what I'm trying to do."

"Well consider me thoroughly wooed then."

"Oh there is plenty more wooing to come, it's my turn to plan our next date."

"I can't wait." Lexa noticed Clarke trying and failing to hold back a yawn. "We should sleep."

"I'm enjoying just being with you too much to sleep."

"I'll still be here when you wake up, just like I'll be here every other morning for as long as you want me to be."

"So forever?" Clarke lay her head on Lexa's chest and hummed contently. "Sounds good to me."

"Me too." Lexa pressed a kiss to Clarke's head. "Goodnight Clarke, sweet dreams."

"Goodnight Lexa." Clarke tilted her head up to press a kiss to Lexa's jaw. 

 

* * *

 

_Saturday._

"Good morning." Lexa said cheerfully as Clarke woke up. 

Clarke smiled sleepily at her. "Mornin' babe."

Lexa leaned over to give Clarke a chaste kiss.

Clarke's smile grew even bigger. "So it wasn't all just a wonderful dream, we really did have an amazing first date yesterday."

"Yeah we did." Lexa gently brushed a strand of hair off of Clarke's face. "You are so beautiful Clarke."

"Right back at you." Clarke leaned up to capture Lexa's lips again. "This is so much better than I ever imagined it could be."

"I'm glad I've surpassed your expectations."

"You have more than surpassed them, I'm pretty sure you have ruined me for anyone else."

Lexa frowned a little before schooling her expression. "Good, I don't want you to be with anyone but me."

Clarke grinned at Lexa's small display of jealousy. "I want you all to myself too."

"I am more than happy to only be yours." Lexa captured Clarke's lips in a longer kiss this time.

When they broke apart Clarke checked what time it was. "Do we have to get up?"

"We still have a few more minutes before Octavia breaks in and drags me away."

Clarke sighed, wishing they could stay in bed all day. "We should invest in a lock they can't pick."

Lexa chuckled. "Agreed."

 

* * *

 

"Clarke!!" Octavia yelled into the apartment. "Where are you Clarkey?"

"Jesus O calm down, what's going on?" Clarke asked, emerging from her old bedroom.

"I won, I actually beat the commander." Octavia announced proudly, practically bouncing with joy.

"What? How?" Clarke looked at Lexa worriedly, she thought maybe Lexa hadn't been ready to start exercising again and had injured herself as a result.

Octavia smirked. "Romeo here...." she gestured towards an embarrassed looking Lexa "had to make a quick stop."

"I got you these." Lexa muttered shyly before handing a small bouquet of flowers to Clarke.

Clarke took a moment to admire the beautiful flowers, spotting orange and coral roses with a few light yellow carnations. "You gave up winning to get me flowers?" She asked in astonishment.

Lexa shrugged, still looking a little embarrassed by the whole situation.

Clarke turned to face Octavia. "O I'm happy for you but you should leave 'cause we're going to make out now."

"You two are disgustingly cute." Octavia said with a smile. "Thanks for inadvertently helping me win Clarkey." She called out as she left the apartment.

Lexa pouted hearing Octavia's parting words.

Clarke moved closer and wrapped her arms around Lexa's neck, one hand still holding the small bouquet. "Don't worry you can reclaim your winner status tomorrow." She leaned in to give Lexa a long lingering kiss.

"It was so worth losing to O." Lexa said when they pulled apart before leaning in to capture Clarke's lips in a much longer, passionate kiss.

 

* * *

 

"What's that look for?" Lexa asked glancing at Clarke while she stirred the contents of the pan.

"What look?" Clarke asked from where she sat on the countertop so she could watch Lexa as she cooked their lunch.

"You're looking at me the same way I look at your art."

"That's because to me you are more beautiful than any artwork I've ever seen." Clarke said with a big dorky grin on her face.

Lexa chuckled. "Smooth talker."

"Truth teller." Clarke shot back quickly, reminding them both of their first ever text conversation.

Lexa moved to stand between Clarke's legs. "You're gonna have to keep those smooth lines to yourself until I'm done cooking or we may end up starving." She pulled Clarke closer with one hand on the back of her neck, bringing their lips together for what Lexa had intended to be a quick kiss.

Clarke hummed against Lexa's lips before she pulled back slightly. "Maybe we should order takeout then we could keep doing this." She captured Lexa's lips again, the kiss quickly turned heated causing Lexa to temporarily forget she had been cooking.

When Lexa did remember what she had been doing she slowed the kiss until she was able to reluctantly pull away from Clarke again to get back to making their meal. "Very, very tempting but it's almost ready."

Clarke sighed dramatically, a small smile showing. "Fine I'll just keep on admiring your beauty then."

 

* * *

 

Raven and Octavia stood in the doorway of Clarke's old bedroom admiring the scene in front of them. Lexa sat upright with her back against the wall on Clarke's old bed with a book in one hand and a coffee cup in the other as she read aloud to Clarke who was happily sitting at her easel painting something but the two couldn't see what it was from their position at the door.

"Aww look at them so domesticated." Octavia cooed, making their presence known.

"You know we're not zoo animals, right?" Lexa asked. 

"We're just observing."

"It's getting creepy, we didn't observe you guys when you started dating Anya and Lincoln." Clarke pointed out.

"Yes but we didn't take months to admit we liked Linc and Anya, we have waited so long for this that it's only fair we get to watch you two being all cute together." Octavia argued.

"Fine but if we ever wake up to find you two watching us sleep I'm banning you both from our apartment." Lexa warned.

"Fair enough that would be crossing the line." Raven admitted.

Lexa hopped up off the bed and walked over to Clarke to take her cup. "More coffee?"

"Yes please." Clarke replied with a sweet smile.

"Coffee guys?"

"Yup thanks Woods."

"You're far too kind to us."

"I know." Lexa agreed cheekily. "Go sit."

As soon as Lexa had left the room Octavia and Raven focused all their attention on Clarke with Octavia asking "so....?"

"So?" Clarke asked, unclear about what they wanted to know.

"How was last night? Did you two manage to keep your hands to yourself?"

Clarke rolled her eyes. "Yes, we're adults and we're perfectly capable of sharing a bed without jumping each others bones, we've been doing that for months now."

"Yes but now you know that you both like each other." Raven pointed out.

"I'd say it's a lot closer to love than it is to just liking each other." Octavia remarked.

"Whoa O it is  _way_  too soon to say things like that." Clarke protested.

"Is it?" Raven asked with genuine sincerity.

A silence fell over them as Clarke thought about Raven's question. She knew her feelings for Lexa were strong, much stronger than her feelings for Finn had ever been. No one had ever captured her attention quite like Lexa had. She couldn't picture a single day of her life without her, the thought of being that attached scared her a little because if she were ever to lose Lexa she knew it would destroy her but the excitement she felt thinking about the first time she would say those three words to Lexa almost completely eradicated that fear.

Lexa came back in breaking Clarke's train of thought, she handed Octavia and Raven a mug of coffee each before ducking out of the room again.

When the two friends looked at Clarke again they had no idea why she looked so glum.

"What's with the pout Griff?"

"I'm not pouting." 

"Uh yeah you kind of are."

Clarke sighed. "If I tell you you'll just mock me."

"No we won't."

"We wouldn't—" Octavia tried to argue but stopped when Clarke gave her a disbelieving look. "Okay fair enough, we probably would but we promise we won't."

"Really?" Clarke asked skeptically.

Both Octavia and Raven nodded their agreement.

Clarke stared at them both trying to decide whether or not it was a good idea to tell them the truth, she ultimately decided to trust that they would be true to their word. "I'm a little addicted to kissing her and I'm just a bit sad she didn't kiss me before she left the room."

Octavia and Raven both shared a look before wide grins appeared on their faces.

"You're giving me cavities from all this sweetness." Octavia teased.

Clarke stuck her fingertips into the glass of water that she was using to clean her paintbrushes and then flicked the water at her two friends. "You said you wouldn't mock me."

"I'm not, I'm just saying it's cute."

Lexa came back into the room again this time carrying her and Clarke's coffee mugs, she made her way over to Clarke and put her coffee cup on the little table she had beside her, she leaned down to press a kiss to Clarke's temple before going back over to the bed and sitting down beside Octavia.

"Whipped." Raven said between fake coughs.

Lexa just rolled her eyes at that comment. "So what are we talking about?"

"What a good kisser you are." Octavia responded almost immediately.

Lexa looked like a deer caught in headlights clearly not having been expecting an answer like that causing the three other girls to laugh at her clear expression of shock.

Raven and Octavia started making obnoxious kissing noises at Lexa in an attempt to further embarrass her.

"Clarke make them stop." Lexa pleaded.

"Why? They're not wrong." Clarke stood up and approached the bed, she leaned down to capture Lexa's lips with her own, she felt Lexa smile causing her to break the kiss to pull back and see the smile for herself. "You are a very good kisser babe."

"Ugh it's no fun if you actually enjoy it." Raven exclaimed before pouting and crossing her arms, disappointed that they couldn't mess with Lexa for just a little longer. 

 

* * *

 

_Sunday afternoon._

"Oh look at you two, you're even cuter than I imagined." Abby cooed.

" _Mom._ " Clarke whined.

"Let me be the doting mother, I've waited a long time for you two to finally get together."

Clarke huffed. "Did everyone know we were going to end up together?"

"Everyone but you two." Anya pointed out.

"We had a groupchat dedicated to talking about you two." Octavia admitted.

"Amongst other ways of celebrating your blossoming relationship." Abby added mysteriously.

"What other ways?" Lexa asked suspiciously.

"That is still a secret for now." Raven said before anyone could give away her secret about the scrapbook.

"You guys are weird." Clarke commented as she started up the coffee maker.

"Agreed." Lexa added as she got cups out of the cupboard and brought them over to Clarke.

Abby smiled watching Lexa easily maneuver around her kitchen, it was clear the time she had spent there while recovering helped her feel more at ease in Clarke's childhood home. "So tell me all about your date, I want to know everything....well not _everything_."

"Don't worry Mama Griff they kept it PG....unfortunately." Raven clarified, her disappointment clear.

Clarke shook her head. "I'm really starting to worry about how invested you are in our relationship Raven."

Everyone chimed in with their agreement except for Anya who patted Raven's hand in a comforting way. "I get it."

"I knew you would." Raven leaned forward to give Anya a quick kiss, she knew her girlfriend hated any kind of PDA but she occasionally made exceptions for Raven.

Lexa nudged Clarke's side and gestured towards the two with her head. "A perfect match, right?"

"Definitely." Clarke smiled at the sight of the two openly showing how much they liked each other.

**Author's Note:**

> Sorry for any spelling/grammar mistakes it was written at 5am while I was sleep deprived so there are probably a lot of mistakes in there.


End file.
